Novus Coorte Evangeli
by Chrono180
Summary: There were many things Shinji Ikari didn't expect from his job as and EVA pilot. But nothing could prepare him for the arrival of the Ice Queen of NERV. Starring Oriko Mikuni of Puella Magi Oriko Magica.
1. Prelude

Novus Coortus Evangeli.

"Don't forget.

Always, somewhere,

Someone is fighting for you

As long as you remember her,

You are not alone"

_You are not alone._

Prelude.

The call came at 7:34 pm. Shortly after the First Battle of Toyko-3.

Gendo Ikari picked up the phone, "What is it?" he asked.

"Sir, we have found the Fourth Child." came the response.

Gendo paused, "The reports I was given stated that Unit 03 would not be completed for months." he stated gruffly.

"Uh, well..." the voice on the other end replied sheepishly, "Once she was selected our timetable wound up moving up significantly. It's not Unit 03 though, Unit 04. I don't really know why they picked it instead but...um..."

Gendo turned to his computer. Pulling up a series of files that were being uploaded to his system, he began reading the profile of the potential pilot.

"Why was I not kept informed of this?" he demanded.

"Uh, w-well, uh, sir..." the voice stammered, clearly intimidated, "Just between you and me, I don't think the director here likes you much."

Gendo shook his head in annoyance. It was true, there were significant rivalries between the divisions of NERV. The American branch disliked not being able to take the lead, the German branch resented the American branch for having twice as much funding, the China branch was at odds with all the others, especially considering the shape their country had been in since Second Impact...

"I'm sure you will find her sync ratios are more than acceptable, extraordinary, actually," The voice prattled on, attempting to justify the reason for a choice made several levels of command above him. "Her intellect is significant as well and-"

"Be quiet." Gendo commanded.

"Yes sir, right sir." The voice replied and shut up.

Gendo looked over the files.

Name: Oriko Mikuni

Known associates:

Hisaomi Mikuni (adoptive father, deceased)

Theresa Mikuni (adoptive mother, deceased)

Kirika Kure (girlfriend, missing, presumed deceased)

Citizenship: Dual. Japan and United States.

He then paused as what was written in the next section.

Known aliases:

Mariko Ikari (birth name, changed upon adoption)

He looked at that note for a long time, then pulled up the testing log.

"Most interesting..." he said, to nobody in particular. "And here I thought she'd never be any use to me."

He turned back to the phone, "Very well. Have her and the EVA flown in as soon as possible."

He hung up the phone. "The question now is where the control system came from..."


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1.

While there were very few parts of Shinji Ikari's life that could be considered boring, Hiroto Kobayashi's lectures definitely were one. Listening to the teacher drone on endlessly day after day about Second Impact and its effects on the world and his family honestly made him wish he was at home with Misato's excessively enthusiastic personality. He wouldn't say the battles in the EVA were better, but mind numbing tedium can definitely wear on a person's soul. He may have only been in this class a few days, but if this was the only thing the professor talked about, the boredom might kill him before the Angels did.

This lecture, however, was interrupted midway through by a firm knock on the door. Every set of eyes in the room immediately turned.

"Ah, that must be our new transfer student." Hiroto stated "Come in."

The door opened to reveal a girl with brilliant green eyes and silver hair tied into a ponytail on the side of her head. Shinji glanced around to notice that every guy around him was transfixed, and the girls, by and large, were staring at her enviously. He shook his head and glanced down, trying to make himself unobtrusive.

"My name is Oriko Mikuni." the girl stated, her voice level and even toned, as if the obvious attention she was getting was nothing new to her. "To answer the question I am sure is on your minds, yes, I am the new EVA pilot, however-"

The rest of her statement was drowned out by an immense clatter of noise as every kid in the class started asking her questions much like they did when Shinji had admitted he was a pilot, just a couple hours previous.

Barely hearing the clatter around him, he lowered his head. _I guess father didn't need me after all._ He thought to himself. He then suddenly jerked his head up. Oriko was looking at him with an emotionless expression on her face. He shivered slightly. Oriko gave a slight smile and nodded at him.

And then she pushed past the crowds to sit with the third EVA pilot in classroom 2-A.

The class sat in stunned silence. Shinji glanced at the two. Guilt struck him that, despite knowing the girl was the other EVA pilot, or other other EVA pilot now, he hadn't bothered to talk with her, or socialize. Admittedly, he had barely done any socialization since his arrival, but he should have at least said something.

To Rei Ayanami, the fact Oriko would sit with her was utterly meaningless, one way or the other. It was however, quite unusual. Since her arrival in seventh grade, there had, to her knowledge, not been a single other person who had chosen the seat next to her, requested her to be a partner in one of their projects, or expressed any interest in who she was.

Toji turned to Kensuke and voiced a question that was on the mind of pretty much the entire class, "Why the hell is she sitting with that freak?"

Oriko shot Toji a withering glare the boy recoiled visibly at. "Really." She stated, her voice like ice. "I want to know, Toji Suzuhara, who gave you the right to refer to Rei as a "freak." She got up and marched over to him. As the boy attempted to back away, Oriko grabbed his shoulder, then motioned towards Rei, "Her right arm is in a cast, her eye under a patch, and it doesn't matter to you how she sustained those injuries?" she pushed her finger into his chest, with him shaking visibly with each poke. She looked around at the class, "You all disgust me." then looked at Shinji, "Not you, Shinji, you've had more than enough of your plate since you got here."

Shinji, unable to speak, simply nodded. _She's the new EVA pilot?_ He thought. _I'm going to be working with her?_ He caught a breath. _At least she doesn't seem to hate me yet. I hope. Does she hate me? I don't know..._

Oriko took her seat next to Rei again, then glanced at the blue-haired girl, "You deserve better," she remarked, then looked down, "I hate it when people get excluded."

Rei simply nodded.

"If that little demonstration is finished," Hiroto stated, "We can continue."

Shinji had honestly hoped he could avoid the classes' attention for the rest of the day. With the spectacle Oriko had caused, he figured it was likely, being that she was much more striking looking, and had a much more noticeable presence.

Unfortunately it quickly became apparent he couldn't slink into the shadows. Not when Toji Suzuhara was approaching him with a most unpleasant look on his face. Kensuke Aida was following him close behind.

"Hey, newcomer," he growled. "I need to work out some aggression. Come here."

"Heh, um, can't we talk about this?" Shinji said, trying to back away.

Toji was about to respond, but instead another voice spoke up.

"Truly, Toji?" Oriko asked, a hateful tone in her voice, "Picking on a young man, who just arrived here, had to pilot the planet's most dangerous weapon in a life or death situation with no training, and who has no hand to hand combat experience?"

Toji turned, a pale look on his face. Kensuke gave a worried glance at him

Shinji stated at Oriko. She was protecting him? Why? He didn't even know her, and she had no problem antagonizing the rest of the class. What made him different?

"That's not what I meant." Toji stammered.

"In what way would you mean it then? Oriko snapped, "You're nothing more than a thug. A bully. How about you fight me instead, hm?"

Toji glanced at Shinji, hoping for him to provide an out. Shinji however, was too scared out his wits to speak.

"What?" Oriko asked, "Scared to hit a girl?"

Toji's demeanor changed immediately from a look of pure fear, to rage. "I'm not scared of you!" he snapped and ran up, swinging a punch.

Which Oriko caught with her hand, and then slugged him in the gut with her other fist. Toji doubled over, puking his guts out.

Oriko shook her head, "I take it my point has been made?" She then turned to Shinji.

"I have much to tell you, but it will have to wait for the moment, we have an emergency call."

A few minutes later, Oriko was being shown into the base by one of the many bridge techs that staffed NERV headquarters

"I must say that I am very glad you arrived, Pilot Mikuni." he stated as the two walked to the bridge, "I am sure you can guess the threat the Angels pose, and considering the performance Pilot Ikari showed in the last battle..." his voice trailed off.

"No need to be formal, Jack Aida." Oriko stated, "Just Oriko is fine. As for Shinji..." She sighed and shook her head, "What did you expect? He's fourteen. Still, don't underestimate him." she opened the door and the two emerged into the bridge room. "He may surprise us yet..."

"Status of civilians and noncombatants?" Misato Katsuragi asked. She turned to glance at the new arrivals, as did Makoto Hyuga, Shigeru Aoba, and Maya Ibuki. Kozo Fuyutsuki remained focused on the screen portraying a bright purple goliath with a brilliant red eye and two long whips approaching Toyko-3. Ritsuko Akagi glanced back as well, then jerked her head towards the screen with sudden force.

"Reports state the evacuation has been completed." Shigeru stated.

"What is the estimated time of Unit 04's arrival?" Oriko asked.

"Three days." Jack stated. "It would have been here by now, however the areal transport that was going to bring it malfunctioned and set the Americans behind schedule."

Oriko pursed her lips and nodded. "I assume my father is otherwise indisposed." she remarked.

A series of explosions showed up to blast the alien, with obviously ineffective results.

"Indeed." Kozo stated, then chuckled, "A waste of the taxpayers' money..." he then remarked.

"The committee is insisting we dispatch another Evangelion." Makoto stated.

"Already completed." Misato stated and gave a slight grin.

As EVA Unit-01 appeared on screen and began to shoot at the Angel with a palette rifle, Misato ran up to a mic and shouting "Idiot! You're hitting it with your own smoke!"

The Fourth Angel's whips slammed into the EVA, demolishing several buildings as it did so. The Unit was hit with the full brunt of the attack and slid across several kilometers of deserted cityline.

"Grab a spare rifle!" Misato shouted.

Oriko sighed. _I can only imagine what is on my brother's mind right now... _she thought.

What was on Shinji's mind at that moment could be adequately described as _Why am I doing this why am I doing this why in dear lord am I doing this..._

As his EVA slid slammed through buildings, he suddenly became aware that the power cord connected to it had been severed. As a five minute countdown appeared on the cockpit, he let out a squeak, and then acquired a sudden sensation of weightlessness as the Unit was taken from the ground and hurled through the air to land on a grassy hill several miles from its originating launch point.

Struggling to remain conscious, he then happened to notice two familiar faces who happened to have snuck out of the evacuation shelter to get a look at a "cool giant robot battle."

"Oh dear lord in heaven..." Oriko mumbled as the faces of Toji Suzuhara and Kensuke Aida appeared on the screen in NERV's bridge.

"What are they doing there?" Ritsuko shouted.

"Performing the twenty-first century equivalent of taking a guided tour of Chernobyl, it looks like..." Oriko remarked. "I'm going to have to have a talk with those two..."

"Shinji!" Misato called, "Let them into the cockpit and make a temporary retreat!"

"What makes you think unauthorized civilians can be allowed into the entry plug?" Ritsuko snarled.

"I'm authorizing it." Misato replied cooly.

Ritsuko grimaced and was about to respond, but was cut off by Misato given Shinji further instruction on how to direct his classmates into the EVA.

Of course, even after their rescue and Shinji using the Angel's tentacles to shove it off his body, it wasn't over. Because between being in two life-or-death battles for the survival of humanity in a week's time, the pressure from everyone to perform, the fact his father had brought Oriko in to replace him for not being good enough, and the fact Toji wouldn't stop yelling in his ear...

The thought in his mind had changed from _Why am I doing this_? To _KILL! KILL! KILL!_ He screamed. And screamed. And screamed. And then ran straight up to the Angel, knife in hand, past its tentacles, and pierced its core.

Once it was dead and his EVA had lost power, he finally stopped screaming and instead began whimpering to himself.

While the two teenagers who snuck onto the battlescene got a thorough dressing down by security, Oriko felt obliged to hammer the lesson in.

"What, in the name of WHATEVER you hold sacred were you two thinking?!" Oriko shouted. "Would you sneak onto the TESTING GROUND of an N-2 mine to see a giant explosion? Toji, do I have to kick your ass again?"

"It was actually my idea." Kensuke admitted.

"What?" Oriko stated, "Your idea? You have the brainpower to program bullet hell shooters and you're still dumb enough to go out there in the middle of an Angel fight?"

"I just want to see this stuff!" Kensuke stated, "Humanity finally has the technology to build giant robots and pit them against aliens, and we can't even see it because NERV is censoring the media! I just-"

Oriko glanced at Toji, who was cowering in her presence and turned back to Kensuke, "You must have absolutely no survival instinct. I may not be able to stop you from breaking out to watch us, being I'm going to be in the fights myself soon, but I'll tell you this. If either of you harm Shinji's mental state in any form or fashion again, I'll make you both very, very sorry. My brother has had a rough enough life and he doesn't need-"

"He's your brother?!" Toji stammered.

"Yes, he is."

"Why didn't you-" Toji started.

"Because it wasn't relevant earlier this morning." Oriko snapped, "I'm going home. I expect sincere apologies from both of you. Both to Shinji and to Captain Katsuragi." she shook her head and stormed off.

Later that night, as Shinji lay in bed with earbuds plugged in his ears, his mind went over the events of the last week. The message from his father, who he hadn't heard from in nearly a decade, being told he was to pilot a seventy meter high weapon of mass destruction, seeing the other pilot at that time with a body so broken she was barely able to stand, trying to fight an angel, having the EVA go berserk and killing the angel when he couldn't, admitted he was the pilot to his class and having to deal with the consequences of that...

And then Oriko showed up. A girl who seemed much calmer, more competent and far better suited to this task than he was. She seemed to like him and Rei, or at least tolerate them, which was more than could be said for her attitude towards the rest of the class. He had overheard one of his classmates describe her as an "Ice Queen." and though he hated to admit it, it didn't seem that far from the truth.

Despite that, she seemed like exactly the sort of person who would be good at piloting EVA. He was being replaced, that much was obvious. He must have screwed up so bad during the first fight that the Marduk Institute had gone looking for a replacement.

He sighed and got out of bed, then began putting together the few possession he had brought with him when he was summoned. Several changes of clothing, the cello he hadn't played in far too long, a few books, his laptop...

He pulled the earbuds out of his ears and stuffed his S-DAT player in his pocket and shook his head. He picked up his suitcase and then heard the doorbell ringing.

He considered who it might be. Toji and Kensuke struck him as the most likely possibilities, or maybe...

He went over and opened the door, for Oriko Mikuni to be standing in the door frame.

She bowed slightly and stated, "Hello there, brother."

Out of the many, many ways a person could cause Shinji Ikari's mental processes to grind to a complete halt, those statements said by that particular person would be one of the easiest and fastest.

His suitcase dropped to the floor next to him, "Er, um, uh..." he stammered out.

Oriko smiled warmly, "It's very good to meet you, mind if we talk for a bit?"

Shinji glanced down at the suitcase, "Um..."

Oriko glanced down at it as well, "Planning to run away?" she asked and shook her head, "It won't help. The world needs you. Misato needs you. I need you."

Shinji stared at her for a long moment, "You need me?" he asked, completely dumbfounded.

"I haven't had a family in a very long time." Oriko said softly. "Alright if I sit down? I'll explain."

Shinji looked at her for a very long moment and then nodded.

Oriko nodded and walked in and sat down in one of the chairs at the dining room table, taking off a big black backpack as she did so and setting it on the floor. Shinji picked up his suitcase and did the same.

"So, I suppose a good place to start is how I'm your sister." Oriko stated, "As near as I can tell, we were fraternal twins, however I was adopted out at a young age to a politician named Hisaomi Mikuni. My birth name was Mariko. I only became aware of my actual parentage a few years ago, when I was inducted into the EVA program."

"Why are you here..." Shinji mumbled.

Oriko paused, "Well, my reason for being a pilot is simple. To defend the planet. But I think the question you want to ask is something different, am I correct?"

Shinji nodded, "Does this mean my dad doesn't want me after all?"

Oriko snorted, "Gendo? Shinji, he never gave a damn about either of us. He threw both of us away as kids. We're useful to him. Nothing more." She shook her head in disgust.

Shinji fell quiet at that.

Oriko looked at him, "I know this is rough, and the people around you aren't doing much to help. But you're doing a great job. You came here and within mere hours had to take an EVA, pilot it against an Angel with no training or even any warning that was what you'd be doing, and suffer excruciating pain as you did so. By doing that, you saved every person on this planet and managed a sync ratio of roughly forty percent on your first try. Whatever anyone else's expectations are of you, you far exceeded mine."

Shinji looked up at Oriko, "Do you really mean that?" he asked softly.

"Every word." Oriko stated, "Very few adults, let alone teenagers, would stand up to the task and even fewer would do it again. And many of those who would do so would have severe psychological damage by the end of the first battle, such as the development of post-traumatic stress disorder."

Shinji considered that for a moment, "Are you here to take my place?" he asked,

Oriko shook her head, "I'm here to support you, Shinji, not replace you. I would have liked to join you in the last battle but there was a delay and my EVA hasn't left the States yet."

Shinji blinked, "The Americans have EVAs?"

"They do." Oriko stated, "Unit 03 and Unit 04. Unit 03 won't be around for a while. Unit 04 wasn't supposed to be completed nearly this early either, but they got very lucky in finding a control system for it. It requires a very hard to find component."

Shinji was curious about what the component was, but decided not to ask. Oriko continued, "There is also an EVA being built in Germany, Unit 02. It remains to be determined whether there will be any more than that, being how expensive these things are to build and maintain."

Shinji nodded, "You know a lot about this."

Oriko shrugged, "I've been training to be a pilot since I was ten, in that time I absorbed every bit of information I could." she then stood up and walked over to Shinji to give him a hug. "Don't worry, you'll do fine. Trust me."

As Shinji relaxed beneath the grip of his sister, he leaned his head on her shoulder. _Trust her. _Much easier said than done. His own father had abandoned him at the train station, as he pleased with him not to leave. How could he...

The siblings' reunion was suddenly interrupted by the door flying open as Misato Katsuragi walked in and then stopped dead in her tracks.

Shinji quickly squirmed out of Oriko's grip and looked at his guardian, "Um, er... Misato..." he stammered.

Oriko cleared her throat and bowed slightly. "My apologies, Katsuragi," she stated, "I was not aware that you would be arriving home this early."

Misato gave a hearty laugh, "Oh, don't worry! And go ahead and call me Misato." she walked over to the fridge, grabbed a can of beer and began drinking it down, "So, how are you two getting along, huh? Long, long lost sibling reunion going well I hope?" she grinned slightly.

"I would say so," Oriko stated, glancing at her extremely embarrassed brother and then at the beer can Misato was holding.

"Great!" Misato cried, then grabbed another can of beer and swallowed it as well.

"If I might make a request," Oriko stated "I would like to be able to move in. I believe it would prove advantageous to Shinji's mental state."

"Well, I dunno," Misato stated, then opening the fridge and pulling out some leftover takeout pizza, then putting it in the microwave. "This place would be a little small for three people and my penguin."

"I am a licensed gourmet chef." Oriko added.

Misato blinked, "Well, in that case, sure!" she grinned.

Oriko nodded, picked up her backpack and Shinji's suitcase, handed the latter to him and gave him a quick nod. He nodded back.

"I'll take the closet." Oriko remarked as they went off. "Just so you know, I'm going to visit Rei tomorrow."


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2.

As Oriko approached an apartment on the southern side of Toyko-3, she took a deep breath and knocked on the door.

There was no response, so she knocked again.

A few moments later, the door opened and Rei Ayanami looked at her.

"Hello." she stated plainly.

"Hello there," Oriko stated, "I hope it isn't a problem that I stopped by."

"It isn't." Rei replied. She nodded and walked back inside. Oriko followed.

As Oriko walked in she was momentarily taken aback at the decrepit state her apartment. Used bandages, dirty clothes, bits of trash were scattered around as if Rei didn't care about her living conditions.

"Are you here for a reason?" Rei asked.

"Well," Oriko stated. "You don't seem to have any friends in class, and Shinji is probably so overwhelmed with his new responsibilities he doesn't have time to think about much else, so I'd stop by and see if you wanted to be friends with me." she gave a small smile.

"Why?" Rei asked.

Oriko paused, "Because you must be very lonely." she stated, "And being alone..." she frowned slightly, "It's not fun. I know from experience."

"I see." Rei stated plainly.

Oriko pursed her lips. This was going to be a bit trickier then she expected. It was clear that her fellow pilot was not good at expressing whatever was in her head.

"Let's try something." She stated, pulling a notebook and a set of colored pencils out of her purse. "How about you draw me a picture and tell me what it means to you." She held them out to Rei, who took them, a blank expression on her face.

"What should I draw?" Rei asked.

"That's up to you." Oriko stated.

Rei paused.

Oriko pursed her lips again. "How about we start with something simple. Draw me, but in different clothes."

Rei nodded and pulled a pencil out of the set and began to work.

Fifteen minutes later, she held up the drawing. A profile of Oriko in a brilliant white gown, similar to that of a princess. A white top hat was perched on top of her silver hair, which was flowing loose down to her back rather than in a ponytail.

Oriko blinked, "Interesting. Might I ask why you chose that?"

Rei shrugged. "It just seemed right." she responded.

Oriko nodded, "Perceptive... How about next, you draw what you think my plugsuit will look like..."

A few days later, Unit 04 arrived.

"Beautiful, isn't she?" Oriko asked, motioning to the Evangelion. Brilliant white with silver arms, it stood as a mark contrast to Unit 01's royal purple and Unit 00's dark orange .

"I don't know if I'd use that term to describe it..." Shinji mumbled. He glanced at Oriko's newly designed plugsuit. The color scheme was the inverse of his own. Where there blue was on his, she had white, and where there was white, she had blue. "Oriko..." he began.

"Yes?" Oriko asked.

"Um..." Shinji said, then shook his head, "Never mind."

"Go ahead and ask whatever you were going to ask." Oriko stated, "You don't need to worry about what I might think."

"Well..." Shinji stated, "I just was wondering why you always wear that ring on your left hand."

For a moment Oriko was speechless, then she chuckled, "You certainly are observant. That ring..." she paused, "I wear it in memory of a very dear friend of mine who I lost several years ago. It was a very rough part of my life that I am still dealing with the consequences of."

"Ah, sorry, sorry..." Shinji stammered, "I didn't mean to dredge up bad memories..."

"It's fine." Oriko stated, "Just leave it at that, if you would."

Shinji quickly nodded.

"Pilot Mikuni, Pilot Ikari," Jack stated, walking up to the pair, "We are ready to begin the tests."

"Soooo," Misato stated as Oriko brought food over to the table she, Shinji and Ritsuko had been sitting at. "How did your first sync test go?"

"Forty seven percent." Oriko stated, "Three percent below my brother."

"And you did it on your first try..." Shinji stated as he began eating the pasta his sister had prepared.

"First try in NERV." Oriko corrected, "Remember, I had been training in the US for a while prior." She looked at Ritsuko, who for some reason seemed to be attempting to avoid looking at her.

As Misato bit into the food, her eyes lit up. "Holy cow!" she cried, "This stuff is amazing, Oriko, what is it?"

"Lasagne Verdi al Forno." she replied, "It is time consuming to make, but well worth the effort if one does it right." she added sitting down at the table.

"Shinji, I just remembered something." Ritsuko spoke up, "Rei's new security card came in, can you give it to her before you come to headquarters tomorrow?"

Shinji glanced at Oriko, "Can you show me where she lives?" he asked,

"Of course." Oriko replied. "I was actually planning on introducing you to her."

"I should mention she's not the best at..." Ritsuko began.

"At what?" Shinji asked.

"Interpersonal communication." Oriko stated. She glanced at Ritsuko who immediately turned her gaze towards Misato when she did so.

_Something's up..._ she thought to herself.

They reached Rei's apartment the next morning, and Shinji rang the doorbell. Then rang it again when there was no answer. And a third time for good measure.

"She's not answering." Shinji stated, and turned to Oriko. "Do you think she went somewhere?"

"Possibly." Oriko stated, "Or she may be in the bath. Let's give her a little bit."

Roughly ten minutes later, the door opened.

"Hello again, Oriko." Rei stated, "Hello, Shinji."

"Um..." Shinji fished in his pocket and held out an envelope, "Your card came in."

Rei nodded and took it, "You may come in." she stated.

As the two entered. Shinji was taken aback at the state of the apartment, and then glanced at Oriko, who didn't seem the least bothered. On a nearby table, a sketchbook lay on top of a dozen pieces of paper with various drawings on them.

"Isn't today your reactivation test?" Oriko asked.

"That is accurate." Rei replied, her voice quiet.

"How are you feeling about that?" Oriko asked.

Rei was silent for a moment, then walked over to her desk and picked up the sketchbook. Pulling out a pencil she quickly drew an image.

Rei and Gendo Ikari, in front of Unit 00.

Shinji glanced at Oriko, who looked over the drawing.

"You have faith in him, is that correct?" Oriko asked.

Rei nodded.

Shinji was about to respond to that, but Oriko spoke first.

"Very well then." she stated, her voice nearly as emotionless as Rei's this time. "Shall we get going?"

Rei nodded, and the three set out for NERV headquarters.

As Shinji and Oriko waited for Rei to finish her test, Oriko spoke up.

"They told you what happened, didn't they?" she asked.

Shinji nodded, "The unit went out of control and she got injured..." he looked at Oriko, "I don't understand why she isn't scared to death to get back in that thing!"

"You are scared of the Evangelions." Oriko stated.

Shinji nodded. "Aren't you?"

Oriko shook her head, "I have encountered far worse than the Evangelions, Shinji."

"Worse?" Shinji cried, "What could possibly be worse?"

"Loneliness." Oriko stated plainly.

It was at that moment the alarm blared.

"Another Angel." Oriko stated, quickly getting up. "We need to hurry."

"Ikari," Kozo stated as he stared at the entity on the monitor, "An unidentified object is approaching the base. It may be the Fifth Angel."

"Abort the test." Gendo stated firmly, "Place all operations on first stage alert."

"You're not going to use Unit 00, are you?" Kozo asked.

"No..." Gendo replied, "Let's see how well my daughter performs in action."

"Releasing lockbolts, removing secondary restraints..." a voice stated over the intercom shortly after the Fifth Angel arrived in Tokyo-3

Oriko took a deep breath to steel her nerves for the upcoming battle. "I must not fear. Fear is the mind killer..." she mumbled. _Oh, who am I fooling? Yes, I'm scared. If we don't stop this thing humanity will go extinct. _

"EVA launch!" Misato cried, and Unit 04 rocketed up onto the Tokyo-3 cityline. Once it emerged, Oriko saw a bright blue Octahedron several miles distant.

And the moment she saw it, a high-intensity particular beam blasted from its form and struck the EVA in the chest.

She was not too proud to scream as the LCL in her cockpit boiled under the intense heat of the attack.

As Oriko recovered in the medpod, she drifted in and out of consciousness, trying to form a coherent thought.

_They need our help. _

_Huh? What was that?_ She thought.

_More specifically, they need your help._

_Hello? Is someone there?_ She focused the best she could, despite the pain. _You sound familiar, do I know you?_

There was nothing else. And she eventually woke back up.

"What... was that?" she mumbled as she woke in a hospital bed. "Dear lord I feel awful..."

Moments later, the door to her room opened and Rei Ayanami and Shinji Ikari walked in.

"Oriko?" Shinji asked.

"Hey..." Oriko stated weakly, "I don't suppose either of you get the number of that freight train?" she chuckled weakly despite herself.

"We have been sent to brief you on the Operation Yashima timetables." Rei stated.

Shinji gave an irritated glance at Rei, who seemed to completely ignore it.

"Hit me with it." Oriko stated. "Killing world destroying monsters comes before my raging headache."

Rei nodded, "The Angel fires a high level energy blast at anything that comes within a certain radius. Captain Katsuragi plans to channel Japan's electricity through an advanced positron rifle from outside the firing range. We are to report at 1730 hours to the cage. We will be deploying our Units at 1800 hours. We will be deploying to a temporary base at Mount Futago at 1830 for further orders."

Oriko glanced at the clock on the wall, "So, one hour until we head out?"

"That is accurate." Rei stated, then hesitated, "I am glad you are alive, Oriko Mikuni." she said plainly.

Shinji stared at Rei, "How can you be so calm?" he cried, "She nearly died out there!"

"Shinji, A word of advice." Oriko stated, "I have been in many bad situations over the last four years of my life, and I have never encountered a single one that was improved by panicking." she glanced down at her naked form, covered by the bed sheet. "I hope one of you brought my clothes."

Rei nodded and tossed a package onto the bed.

"Thank you. Head out in the hall and I will join you shortly." Oriko stated.

After Oriko got dressed, the three pilots headed towards the cage, Shinji spoke up. "Oriko..." he said softly.

"Yes?" Oriko spoke up.

Shinji sighed, "I just..."

"You're scared to fight this Angel, especially after seeing what happened to me." Oriko stated, "You are also having problems seeing yourself as a decent pilot as Rei and I seem much better at handling this kind of situation than you are. Is that correct?"

Shinji nodded.

Oriko sighed, "What I said earlier... I lied. I am scared to fight the Angels. However, I push that fear down because my personal emotions come secondary to defeating these creatures. Are you aware of the danger these entities pose?"

Shinji hesitated.

"If we fail against a single one of the Angels, then humanity will be rendered extinct." Oriko stated plainly. "However, remember this. As long as you are doing your best, you will have my approval, even if you cannot win our fathers."

Shinji gave a small smile at that, "Thank you." he said softly.

"Alright, here is the battle plan." Misato stated as the briefing began, "Shinji, you will be the gunner. Rei, cover him with Unit 00. We have supplied a shield that should endure the particle beam for seventeen seconds. Oriko, you will be located at a ninety degree angle to Unit 01 and Unit 00. Stand behind the mountain with a palette rifle and fire immediately before Shinji. As a distraction, you will increase the chances of our success from 8.7% to 25.4%. The data we collected showed the angel will likely fire back, so make sure you are under decent cover."

Shinji's face paled. _She nearly died with the first attack and you're asking her to risk getting hit again?_

Oriko simply nodded, "Understood, Captain." she stated firmly.

_And she doesn't even mind it? _Shinji thought. His mind wandered back to the first time he had been asked to pilot EVA. When he had told his father he simply couldn't do it and they had brought Rei out. And despite her severe injuries, she had been perfectly willing to pilot the EVA if he would not.

Now that he thought about it, there seemed to be some notable similarities between Rei and his Sister. Rei, as best as he could tell, never showed emotion. Oriko did show emotion at times, but it was usually subdued, hidden behind a calm, collected exterior. And they had similar looks. About the same height, and similar facial structure...

"Shinji." Ritsuko stated, interrupting his contemplation, "Since the positron beam will be influenced by the Earth's gravity and magnetic field, it will not travel in a straight line. You must be able to compensate. The moment the indicators in the center line up, pull the trigger. The computers will do the rest. And before the rifle can fire again, you must wait for the rifle to cool, then replace the fuses."

"What if I miss?" He asked, clearly overwhelmed by the situation.

"You won't miss." Oriko stated. "Be confident, and make yourself believe that you can do this. This is no different than playing a first person shooter video game."

"I don't play video games..." Shinji stated.

"Trust me, Shinji." Oriko stated, "You'll do fine."

"How can you say that?" he asked.

Oriko simply smiled and gave him a knowing look.

"I am just to defend Unit 01, is that correct?" Rei asked.

"Yes, Rei." Ritsuko stated, "Shinji has the highest sync ratio, and this operation requires a great deal of precision."

"Understood." Rei stated.

"It's time. Get geared up." Misato stated.

As Oriko left to her position on the side of a distant mountain, Shinji and Rei found themselves alone on the rooftop.

"Ayanami..." Shinji began, "Why do you pilot this thing?"

"I am bonded to it." Rei stated.

"Bonded?" Shinji asked.

Rei nodded, and picked up her sketchbook. A few minutes later, she handed Shinji a picture. Rei was there, next to Unit 00. And right below Unit 00 was what looked like Rei, but much younger.

"I don't understand." Shinji stated.

Rei looked at the ground. "You don't have to." she said plainly. "But I have nothing else..." she glanced at the EVA.

Shinji looked at Rei, "What do you mean you have nothing else?"

"It's time." Rei stated, "Goodbye, Shinji." With that, Operation Yashima began.

"Initiating power connections. Cooling systems on full power... Transferring power..." Shigeru stated.

"Alright Shinji." Misato stated, "We're entrusting you with the energy of the entire nation. Get ready, on my mark..."

"Tenths connections engaged." Makoto stated, "Transferring all power to the positron rifle. Seven. Six. Five."

"We're detecting an energy buildup inside the target!" Maya shouted.

"Oriko! Take your shot!" Misato cried.

Across the field, Unit 04 quickly stood up from behind the mountain it had been crouched behind and fired at the Fifth Angel. As it did so, another energy blast tore out of the Octahedron and sliced through the mountain. The EVA's cover had been destroyed, but it was still standing.

"Four. Three. Two. One."

"Now Shinji!" Misato shouted.

At that moment Shinji Ikari pulled the trigger on his gun and a beam of energy blasted out of the barrel, striking the Angel's surface.

"The core is exposed!" Ritsuko shouted.

"Ready the second shot!" Misato cried, "Oriko, status?"

"Still got fight in me." Came the response. "Let's finish this."

"Replacing fuses." Makoto stated, "Cooling barrel."

"We've got another buildup!" Maya called.

"Oriko!" Misato shouted.

Oriko didn't need another word, she quickly grabbed the rifle with her EVA and fired again. However, this time the Angel wasn't fooled. And the particle beam emerged from its body and launched straight towards Unit 01.

Unit 00 quickly dove in front with the makeshift shield formed from part of the space shuttle to cover the other Unit as best as it could. As the world around Unit 01 went white, Shinji focused on the targeting receptacle.

They were counting on him.

So he damn well better not screw this up.

The few seconds it took for the indicators to move to the center seemed like a lifetime to him, and the moment they lined up, he fired.

And the second shot blasted right through Ramiel's core and out the other side.

As the Angel fell, Shinji turned to see Unit 00, melted from the intensity of the energy fall to the ground, he cried out.

As he exited his EVA and ran towards the disabled Unit, he grabbed a hold of a burning hatch and pulled.

"Need help?" he heard Oriko say, as his sister grabbed the other end of the hatch. Quickly tearing it off its hinges, they entered.

Rei looked up from the entry plug, it half-filled with LCL.

"I..." she began.

"Don't say that!" Shinji cried, breaking down in tears. "Don't say you have nothing else! And don't say goodbye like you did! I just can't..."

"Are you alright?" Oriko stated.

"I am unharmed." Rei replied, "Why is he crying?"

"Because he cares about you." Oriko stated. "As do I."

Rei considered that. And then gave a small smile.


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 03.

It had been a few weeks since Oriko had started paying regular visits to Rei Ayanami, and while the pilot of Unit 00 remained emotionally distant, Oriko could tell she appreciated her company. The bluenette was getting better at expressing the thoughts in her head, both verbally and on paper, though she remained quiet most of the time and rather insular.

However, during one of her drawing exercises, she handed Oriko a most unusual work. A dozen images of her head clustered together, with a solitary image of herself on spaced far apart from the rest.

As Oriko took the image, she stared at it for a long moment, trying to figure out what it meant. Finally, she turned to Rei.

"I'm afraid that you have me at a loss." she admitted, "Normally I can take a decent guess as to what you are trying to say, but I don't understand this one."

Rei looked at the drawing and then at Oriko. "This is me." she said, pointing to the solitary image. "And these are the other mes." she continued, pointing to the cluster.

"Other yous?" Oriko asked, trying to figure out what that meant.

"I have other selves." Rei stated.

Seeing Oriko still at a loss, she continued, "When I was created, many copies were made of me, so if I died, I could be replaced."

Oriko thought and then something clicked in her head, "You're a clone?" she asked

Rei nodded, "That would be an accurate way to put it."

"Can you elaborate on that?" Oriko considered that.

"If I can be replaced, does my life matter?" Rei asked.

"Of course it does." Oriko stated, "Regardless of what others may think, you aren't replaceable to me. Regardless of circumstances."

Rei considered that. Oriko looked at her thoughtfully.

"Rei. Can you keep a secret?" she asked.

"Yes." Rei stated.

"Promise me you won't tell anyone this. Shinji, Ritsuko, Misato and especially not Gendo. Can you do that?" Oriko asked.

Rei nodded, "I promise."

Oriko nodded, "I'm going to trust you with something very personal. Follow me to the park."

Rei nodded and the two left Rei's apartment and traveled to a park several kilometers away. The day was unusually warm, so nobody else was around.

Oriko held up her hand. "You see this ring? The one I always wear?" she took it off her finger and held it out. "Take this, walk one hundred meters that way, turn around and walk back."

Rei gave her a puzzled look but took the ring, then methodically walked the requested distance. The moment she reached the one hundred meter mark, she turned around, and her eyes widened as she saw Oriko fall to the ground like a puppet whose strings had been cut.

"Oriko-" she stated and quickly ran back to her seemingly lifeless figure.

As she approached, Oriko got off the ground and looked at Rei.

"What happened?" Rei asked.

"Rei..." Oriko stated, "I'm not human." Taking the ring from the other pilot and putting it back on her finger, she sighed. "My soul is in there, not in my body. It's a lot like how the Evangelions function." Pointing to her head she said "EVA" then pointed to her ring "Pilot."

Rei pondered that for a minute. "I'm not human either." she stated.

"I would consider a clone human." Oriko stated.

Rei shook her head, "I'm part Angel." she corrected.

"Oh." Oriko stated, "Does that bother you?"

Rei paused, "I don't know."

Oriko looked at Rei. "I'm curious, Rei. To you, what defines a human?"

Rei considered that for a long moment.

"I don't know." she finally stated.

"Neither do I." Oriko admitted.

"Hooowee!" Misato cried on the following Monday, taking a big gulp of beer. "That's the way to start a good morning!"

"If you want to acquire long term liver damage." Oriko remarked, cooking up some eggs and bacon in a pair of frying pans

"You got a problem with tradition?" Misato asked.

"Not at all." Oriko replied, "But little tip, Misato, if you want to keep your liver, you'll cut down. Of course, it's entirely possible that will be rendered moot from everyone getting killed in an Angel attack." She put the eggs and bacon on a pair of plates and set it down in front of Shinji and Misato then took some for herself.

"Are you really coming to my school today?" Shinji asked.

"Of course I am!" Misato cried, "It's our parent teacher meeting!"

"But you're just so busy at your job..." Shinji suggested.

"It's my job anyway!" Misato grinned.

"What my brother is trying to say," Oriko stated, "Is that he feels embarrassed by your lack of cleanliness, laziness in regards to cooking and cleaning, and unusually revealing dress sense. However, I see no problem with the meeting. You are a far superior guardian than Gendo Ikari. Or, God forbid, Hisaomi Mikuni."

Misato's face flushed a bit.

"Was Hisaomi your adoptive father?" Shinji asked.

Oriko nodded, "Yeah. Real piece of work too. You remember that big scandal four years ago where one of Japan's presidential candidates was found to have embezzled money from his party? That was him."

"Wait, seriously?" Misato asked, "_He_ was your father?"

Oriko nodded, "I could write an entire book about what a terrible father he was. Worse than Gendo, even. Gendo may have abandoned us, but Hisaomi exploited me relentlessly."

Shinji blinked, "I didn't really pay attention to that." he admitted.

"Well, you were ten years old. Not many ten year olds pay attention to politics." Oriko shrugged.

It was at that point the doorbell rang. Misato went and got it.

"Good morning Ikari!" Toji and Kensuke cried in unison. "Misato we're taking off now!"

Shinji nodded and left with the two of them.

Oriko sighed. "Well, it's good to see he's making friends. Even complete imbeciles like those two." she shook her head.

Misato chuckled, "Well, if I was their age, I'd probably act the same way."

Oriko gave her an inquisitive look, "They broke out of an evacuation shelter to watch Shinji do battle. As far as I know, they did it again with the last Angel too."

"Well, if you can't fight the Angels, watching your friends fight them is the next best thing, right?" Misato grinned, "How are you doing in that respect?"

Oriko shrugged, "My nickname at school is the "Ice Queen of NERV" if that tells you anything."

Misato frowned, "Really? That's terrible."

Oriko shrugged, "Nothing new in my book. My first dad threw me away. My second killed himself. Both my mothers are dead. My classmates all abandoned me for being associated with a criminal." she shrugged, "Get close to someone and sooner or later they'll throw you away. I fully expect once the Angels are all dead, Shinji and Rei will go on with their own lives and I won't ever see them again."

Misato was taken aback at the harshness of that statement. "Isn't there anyone you trust not to do that?"

Oriko paused and sighed, "There was one girl. Kirika Kure. But she... isn't around anymore."

Misato was about to respond when the doorbell rang again.

Oriko got up and opened it to reveal Rei Ayanami outside.

"Are you ready?" she asked.

"I am." Oriko stated and the two left for class.

Around midway through the school day, Hiroto's lecture was interrupted by every male in the school and more than a few females piling towards the window in an attempt to get a look at Shinji's "bootylicous guardian." Shinji himself reluctantly followed Toji and Kensuke, clearly unimpressed by their behavior, while Oriko simply sighed and turned to Rei.

"You ever get the feeling men are born with two brains and only have enough blood in their body to operate one at a time?" Oriko asked.

Rei glanced at Oriko and gave a barely noticeable smile.

At that moment, another man with a particularly intelligent brain had come to a conclusion.

"Kozo." Gendo stated, "I have made a decision."

"Yes, Commander Ikari?" his immediate subordinate responded.

"My daughter is unfit for the EVA program." Gendo said, "She is too strong-willed. We will have to replace her."

"Understood," Kozo stated, "How do you want this to be done?"

"The Jet Alone prototype will activate shortly." Gendo stated, "Enact our plans for the demonstration. Make sure the danger is real, and she will do the rest."

"Yes sir." came the reply.

A few days after that, the prototype was set to activate.

"I would like to thank you all for coming to this special demonstration!" the man at the podium called out. "In a few minutes, we will be taking you all up to the control room for a better view, but first I will be answering those questions I am sure you all have."

"Yes!" Ritsuko called out, raising her hand.

"Ah, the famous Dr. Ritsuko Akagi!" the man replied "It is our pleasure to have you here for out demonstration."

"A question." Ritsuko stated, "Is it true this unit is equipped with an internal nuclear reactor?"

"That is correct." The man stated, "It is our most distinguishing feature. Allowing one hundred and fifty days of continuous operation."

"But is it not unsafe to have such a power source in a land-based weapon designed for hand-to-hand combat?" Ritsuko called out.

"We think it is more practical than a weapon that won't work for more than five minutes without power." The man replied, grinning smugly.

"But in an emergency there could be problems with remote control." Ritsuko responded.

As Misato watched her coworker go on an extended debate with the president of one of Japans leading weapon manufacturers, she wondered why she had agreed to come in the first place. She was a tactician, not a businesswoman. Her mind began drifting to her wards. Shinji was, as people she knew went, simple. He was scared to get close to anyone for fear of getting hurt. The hedgehog's dilemma, as she termed it.

But Oriko was... complicated. On the surface, she appeared calm and collected, but from what she had told Misato a few days ago, she had been hurt so badly by people she was close to that to her, getting hurt be them was a fact, not a possibility. It seemed she didn't care about being liked because she felt being liked wouldn't matter. Regardless of whether someone liked her or not, she'd be hurt by them. It was as if she had given up on friendship.

And there was more as well. Her coworker, Ritsuko, seemed to actively avoid the girl. Misato had asked about that, only for her to dismiss the subject. Ritsuko, as far as Misato knew, had no connection to Oriko, so why couldn't she look Unit 04's pilot in the eye?

And something seemed "off" about the girl, as well. The way she talked and carried herself, Misato would call her an adult. More so, an adult who had been through a war. Even assuming Hisaomi Mikuni was as big of an asshole as Oriko suggested, she would have been sheltered from most of the aftereffects of Second Impact, so why did she act like she had been in the middle of battle for most of her young life? And what had happened to that girl Oriko had mentioned? Kirika? Misato would have to ask about that.

Eventually, after an extended debate and her venting some of her frustrations out on a storage locker, the demonstration began.

And quickly went to hell as Jet Alone's reactor began spiraling out of control. And to make matters worse, the robot began a steady march towards Asugi City.

It was roughly at that time that, miles away, Oriko turned on the TV.

As the broadcast about the "Rampaging giant robot" played, several thoughts ran through her mind.

"Shouldn't this broadcast be censored?" she thought "The ones about the Angels were. No. Of course not. A giant robot doesn't go out of control for no reason, this was staged. If Gendo sabotaged the reactor, he could discredit Jet Alone. And more to the point, if I go out to stop it, he could use it as an excuse to get rid of me..."

She thought that over. "Which means that right now I have to choose whether to either give him the perfect excuse to get rid of me as pilot, or let it melt down in the middle of a city consisting of five million people."

She looked down at the ground, "Well played Gendo." then pulled out her phone, "Misato, are you there?"

"Oriko?"

"Can you get your friends in NERV to get my EVA online?" Oriko asked, "And do you have the password to disable the reactor?"

"The answers are yes and yes, respectively." Misato replied. "I was about to call Shinji, but I'm glad you took the initiative."

"On my way." Oriko stated.

The plan was relatively simple. Air-drop Unit 04 near Jet Alone, have Oriko deposit Misato on the robot so she could climb in and disable the reactor and then hold it in place with the EVA. The difficult part was that they would have to do it with the five minutes of battery power Unit 04 could maintain when not plugged in.

So the minute Unit 04 hit the ground, Oriko pushed it as fast as it could towards Jet Alone. Faster than it was built to run, faster than any EVA unit had run in the fast, faster than its construction could have possibly allowed it to run. There was a burst of sound as it broke the sonic barrier and grabbed Jet Alone

Once the robot was in Unit 04s grip, Oriko quickly placed Misato on its back, only for her to fall off. Thankfully, Oriko was quick on the draw and caught her with her Unit's other hand and placed her back on it. This time, Misato didn't fall and Oriko saw her radiation suit-clad body disappear into the interior.

As she struggled with the robot, Misato quickly ran to the console inside and began entering the passwords, only for the computer to give error readouts.

"Oriko, the program must have been tampered with." she spoke into her radio.

"Can you disable it physically?" the silver hair girl responded.

"I'll try." Misato stated and trust the weight of her body against the control rods in the reactor. "Having trouble..."

Oriko took quick stock of the situation. Her Unit had less than a half-minute of power, Jet Alone's reactor was set to go critical in moments, and Misato was unable to disable it with her own body strength... Oriko sighed and focused.

And inside the reactor, Misato's eyes opened wide in shock as a dozen silver spheres appeared from thin air and slammed themselves into the control rods.

The rods retracted and Jet Alone shut down.

As Oriko and Misato flew back, Misato spoke up.

"Oriko, what happened in there?" she asked.

"What do you mean, Misato?" Oriko asked.

"Those spheres inside the reactor." Misato pressed.

Oriko gave Misato a very puzzled look, "What on earth are you talking about? What spheres?"

"I just..." Misato sighed and shook her head. "Never mind." She briefly wondered if she could obtain a recording of what had happened and then remembered that since Jet Alone wasn't designed to have a pilot, the interior wasn't recorded.

And she had a hunch she should keep whatever happened in there a secret.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 04.

"I am sure you understand the trouble you are in." Gendo stated, glowering at his daughter.

"I disabled a runaway robot and saved five million people." Oriko stated firmly, "It was my understanding the Evangelion Units were built for the purpose of saving lives. Thanks to my actions, there was not a single causality from Jet Alone, and the damage to my Unit was minimal."

"You enacted an unauthorized mission on your own accord." Gendo stated, "I cannot have insubordination from my pilots."

Oriko sighed. She knew arguing the point was useless, considering the entire point of the rampage was to use it as an excuse to get rid of her. Still, she felt she had to make a case.

"I have sent Shinji and Misato to collect your replacement." Gendo stated, "Leave Tokyo-3 by the end of the day."

"You realize the damage you will do to your son by removing me, do you not?" Oriko asked "His psych is already a mess from you abandoning him as a child. I doubt he'll recover if I have to leave the city as well."

"He will endure." Gendo simply replied.

"Or he may choose not to pilot EVA anymore." Oriko stated. "Maybe he'll leave with me." she shrugged.

"I have entertained you long enough, Oriko Mikuni." Gendo stated, "Leave."

Oriko sighed and left her father's office.

_I suppose I was wrong._ She thought. _Gendo is worse than Hisaomi. Hisaomi broke me through negligence, while Gendo is taking deliberate action to break Shinji. And Hisaomi never endangered millions of lives just to get someone out of his life. _

With Shinji away, she just had one person she needed to see.

And so, less than an hour later, she rang Rei's doorbell for what she figured would be the last time. Unit 00's pilot answered just a few minutes later and gave a nod to her appearance.

"Hello Oriko." she stated.

"Hey Rei." Oriko stated, "Got a minute?"

Rei nodded and the two entered her apartment. Oriko noticed Rei had apparently cleaned up since she had last been over. Her clothes had been folded and placed in stacks and the trash on the floor had been stuffed into an overflowing garbage bin. Her desk was covered with various drawings on paper, and two sketchbooks lay on top of it.

"Gendo is kicking me out." Oriko stated bluntly.

Rei looked at Oriko, "Why is he doing that?" she asked.

"Because I'm a threat." Oriko stated, "I'm reasonably mentally stable, and smart. It's easier to manipulate those that are mentally broken. By getting rid of me, he can remove someone who he has a great deal of trouble manipulating, and wreck his son's mental stability."

Rei looked away from Oriko, and Oriko traced her gaze to an item on her desk she hadn't noticed. Gendo's glasses.

"I have difficulty believing Commander Ikari is that kind of person." Rei said softly.

Oriko shrugged, "Well, he is. I have to leave the city by the end of the day. Can I ask you a favor?"

Rei looked back at Oriko, "Yes."

"Can you take care of my brother for me?" Oriko asked, "And let him know that if he wants to give up EVA, he can follow me to my new address and move in with me. He'll have a home with me if he doesn't want to stay here."

Rei stared at Oriko for a long moment, "That will not be necessary." she stated firmly.

"What do you mean-" Oriko began but Rei spoke again.

"I will make sure you remain as a pilot." Rei said.

Oriko paused.

"The Commander needs me." Rei stated, "If I insist, he will listen." She then got up and walked out the door. "Trust me."

Oriko stood in her room for a moment, before walking out as well.

Rei was joking. She had to be. There was no way in the world she could talk Gendo out of this. Oriko was way too big a threat to his plans. He'd stomp on Rei too if she gave him too much trouble. More likely, Rei just said that to placate her. Jerking her around like every person she had bothered to give her time to except Kirika Kure...

Still, the train out of the city wouldn't leave for a few more hours...

In the meantime, Commander Ikari played the footage from the Jet Alone battle. Then rewound it and played it again. And again. And there was one thing that struck him. Unit 04 was going too fast. Evangelions were, by their design, only supposed to go a certain speed. And Unit 04 was substantially past that. Its construction must have been altered somehow.

Picking up the phone, he dialed a number leading to the American branch of NERV.

"Y-yes?" the voice on the other line stated, "Commander Ikari sir?"

"I want you to forward me the details on the construction of Unit 04." he stated firmly.

"Oh, uh... um... I'm sorry sir, but I can't do that." the voice stated.

"Do you forget who you are speaking to?" Gendo commanded.

"No, no sir, it's not that. I'd love to forward you the files but they were destroyed in an accident." the voice quavered

"An accident." Gendo stated.

"Y-yes sir." the voice stated. "The office housing the servers wound up in a big fire a little less than a year ago. We were unable to recover any of the data, and my commanding officer was unfortunately very bad about backing things up..."

Gendo shook his head in annoyance. Incompetent idiots. No matter, it was not like the unit would be in use any more.

At that point he heard a knock on his door. Hanging up the phone he called out "Enter."

At that point, Rei Ayanami walked in.

"You needed something?" he asked.

"Yes." Rei stated, "I need you to reinstate Oriko Mikuni as the pilot of Unit 04."

Gendo was taken momentarily aback by that. "I am afraid I cannot allow that. She undertook an unauthorized mission, jeopardizing our entire organization. She's uncontrollable."

"I insist." Rei stated, "I will not allow any harm to come to her or Shinji Ikari, and her removal would damage them both."

"It is an unacceptable risk." Gendo stated, "I am sorry."

"In that case," Rei stated, her voice perfectly level, "You can retrieve Yui without me." she turned and began to walk away.

For a moment, Gendo was stunned into silence. _She went there? _He thought. _How... how dare she... _Clenching his fists he spoke again, "Rei."

"Yes?" Rei asked, without looking back.

"If you feel that strongly about it, I will allow her back in the program." he stated, "But I have already given permission for the pilot of Unit 02 to join us."

"That is acceptable." Rei stated and walked out of the room.

Once she left Gendo shook his head. "Damnit," he swore, "I never should have allowed her to come on board in the first place." he took a deep breath to calm himself, "I suppose I shall simply have to arrange an accident."

While that was going on Oriko approached the train station, carrying a suitcase with the few possessions she bothered to bring to Tokyo-3, she looked back. "I hate to think of what will happen when they bring that girl from Germany over." she mumbled, "Her psych profile has even more red flags than my brother. Though that's probably the point." she sat down on a bench and checked her watch, "Another hour till it arrives." she stated.

And then her phone began ringing. "Hello?" she asked.

"This is Commander Ikari." the voice spoke, "I have reconsidered my position and I am allowing you back in the program. But you are on probation for the time being. Units 01 and 02 will be taking the lead until further notice."

Oriko was stunned into silence for a moment, then found her voice, "Thank you, Commander. That is most gracious of you."

The line hung up and Oriko licked her lips.

_I owe Rei big time._ She thought. _And I was wrong. Some people are actually worthy of the term "friend."_

Her first encounter with what was to be her replacement occurred the next day.

The evening prior she had learned two things. One was that the Sixth Angel had been defeated, and the other was that Shinji had not been informed that she was to be removed from the program. As far as he knew, the Second Child was an addition, not a replacement, to the group. Oriko saw no need to alter his perception on that regard, being that at this point in time it was correct.

Due to the emotional exhaustion she had felt, she had gone to bed early and would have easily overslept had Rei Ayanami not knocked on her door for them to go to school. She dressed in a hurry and the two set off.

Most of the walk was spent in silence, but as they approached the school, Oriko finally spoke.

"Thank you." she stated.

"No thanks are necessary." Rei replied.

"Do you mind if I ask how you did it?" Oriko asked

"I am a key component of Gendo's plan to reunite with Yui Ikari." Rei simply stated.

"But Yui's dead." Oriko remarked.

"Is she?" Rei asked.

Oriko considered that for a moment, "I think I understand. You are saying that-"

"Hello!" A voice cried out. And Oriko looked behind them to see a red-headed girl quickly approaching them.

"I'm Asuka!" the girl said, "Asuka Langley Sohryu. Pilot of Unit 02. Let's be good friends!"

"What for?" Rei asked.

"Because it would be..." Asuka said, "Convenient!"

Rei was about to respond to that, but Oriko spoke first.

"So let me get this straight." Oriko stated, her eyes burning with a cold fury, "You choose your friendships based on how you might be able to use them, rather than valuing them as a person? That is an incredibly arrogant and manipulative attitude to take, and believe me, Asuka Langley Sohryu, I know arrogant and manipulative. My father would be proud. _Both_ my fathers would be proud." she gave a thoroughly disgusted look at the redhead.

Rei was momentarily taken aback by the outburst. Oriko hadn't gone off like that since the day she arrived in class and made it adamantly clear what she thought of how the class treated her. "I believe we will pass at this juncture." she said to Asuka.

Asuka was rendered briefly speechless, and as the two walked off she snorted, "No wonder they call her the ice queen." she remarked to nobody in particular, then stormed off.

The first few days with Asuka as an addition to the classroom proved lively. Being that she was culturally German, Oriko had expected it would take time for her to adjust to Japanese culture, however Asuka didn't seem to be bothering to "adjust" and instead seemed to prefer being as loud, emotional, and (in Oriko's opinion) obnoxious as she desired to be. She picked up through the class grapevine the redhead had a list of potential suitors consisting of pretty much every straight male in the school, and she took note of the fact Kensuke had put his photography hobby to use and he and Toji were apparently semi-erotic photos of her as a side business.

It was times like this Oriko was secretly glad most of the class thought of her as a bitch. If there was one thing she didn't need, it was a one-man paparazzi trying to make money off her.

It was soon after that another Angel appeared off the coast of Tokyo-3. Being that Oriko had been essentially benched, Shinji and Asuka were sent off to intercept it.

In retrospect, Oriko didn't mind being taken off the frontline. While her sync scores were comparable to her brothers, she preferring acting as support, taking the heavy hits for her teammates. She was much better at enduring pain than her brother, for one, and she felt he could use the ego boost he was getting as the top EVA pilot. Being benched, however, meant Shinji wouldn't have to worry about her getting hurt or killed like she nearly was from that particle beam cannon.

As she sat in the bridge room as Misato directed Units 01 and 02, she glanced at Ritsuko, who once again averted her eyes from where she had been starting at the silver-haired girl.

"Akagi." she stated, "Is there a reason you constantly stare at me, and then look away the minute I return your gaze?" she asked.

"Oh, you just remind me of someone." Ritsuko commented, "A girl I knew once who left me long ago."

Oriko raised an eyebrow, then glanced at the screen. The two EVAs were being deployed to intercept the Angel...

And Asuka charged straight towards the Angel, against Misato's orders for them to attack in sequence.

Oriko sighed, "Oh for crying out loud. And I thought it was bad when Toji and Kensuke wound up in the middle of Unit 01s battle..."

Asuka split the Angel in half with a long pike. And moments later the Angel reformed into two Angels. Which defeated both EVAs in quick succession afterwards.

Oriko was very thankful she did not have to attend the tongue lashing her two fellow pilots received from the bases sub-commander. Instead...

"So, this is the paperwork you have to deal with from that debacle?" Oriko asked, staring at the immense pile on Misato's desk.

Misato nodded, "Part of my job. The part I despise the most." she stated and sighed. "If Commander Ikari was here, he'd have me fired..."

"I doubt that." Oriko stated. Misato glanced at her.

"My father is pragmatic in the extreme, and completely above the law." she stated, "Compared to every other high-ranking officer in the base, you are far superior in terms of tactical ability and willingness to get things done. He finds you useful, so he'd keep you on regardless of public opinion. I mean, who would he replace you with? Maya?" Oriko chuckled.

Misato nodded, "Thanks for being willing to help me with this." she remarked.

The door to Misato's office opened and Ritsuko walked in, then stopped dead in her tracks when she saw Oriko.

"Oh hey there." Misato remarked.

"Is this a bad time?" Ritsuko asked.

"As good as time as anytime within the next six hours." Oriko remarked, motioning to the stack of paperwork.

"Ah. Well." Ritsuko cleared her throat, "Kaji thought this might come in handy for your plan to defeat the Angel." she stated, placing a disk drive on Misato's desk. "I'll get going now." she added and then hurried out of the office.

Oriko watched her leave and turned to Misato, "Can you explain why she acts that way around me?" she asked.

Misato shrugged, "I honestly don't have the faintest idea. I'd almost say she's scared of you. Or ashamed to be around you. But neither of those make any sense." she shrugged. "Anyway, this paperwork won't do itself..."

"I'm home!" Shinji called out, then stopped inside the door to Misato's house. "What is this?" he asked, staring at the dozens and dozens of boxes piled in the house.

"Don't be so rude!" Asuka shouted, "Hmph, why are you still here?"

"Still here?" Shinji replied, disbelieving, "I live here!"

"Well, you've been dumped for the new model." Asuka replied, grinning. "Misato will be living with me now. Why are Japanese houses so small, anyway? I couldn't even get half my stuff in here! And how do you live in rooms without locks? Unbelievable..."

"No, you're unbelievable, not Japanese customs." Oriko remarked as she entered the house. "You're rude, obnoxious, and think everyone and everything should bow down in your presence."

Asuka snorted, "I am a much superior pilot than either you or Shinji the Invincible over there, so of course I'm the superior choice to be living in this house."

"That's hardly why you were given permission to move in." Oriko stated and glanced behind her to Misato, who was entering behind her. "Would you explain it to them?"

"Right then." Misato stated, pulling a series of files from a folder, "The only way to destroy the Seventh Angel is to execute a simultaneous two point attack on the core while the Angel is separated. Coordination between the two of you will be essential. As such, you will be living with us, Asuka."

"You can thank Kaji for the idea." Oriko remarked.

"Wa-what?" Asuka cried, "Kaji?! But this... This is impossible..."

"It's perfectly possible if you are willing to coordinate with Shinji." Oriko responded. _Which means it probably is impossible, but let's not say that._

"The attack pattern will be coordinated to this music." Misato stated, holding up a cassette disk. "We start now, and attack in six days."

The remainder of the day was spent in in training, a process Oriko would describe as "Going nowhere fast." Around ten PM, there was a brief pause in the training as she prepared some food.

"That smells good." Shinji remarked as he walked into the kitchen from the living room, "What is it?"

"Bratwurst and Kartoffelsalat." Oriko replied, "Otherwise known as German sausage and potato salad. I figured I'd let our new pilot have some comforts of home."

"Really?" Asuka called out, "You think I'll eat something the Ice Queen cooked?"

"Well, Asuka," Shinji stated, "Ever since she moved in, she's cooked all our meals. So unless you'd have instant curry or something..." he chuckled slightly.

"Hmmph." Asuka remarked, "Fine, then I'll eat it, but I won't like it."

Oriko sighed, "You know, this is actually one time where beer would be an appropriate drink to add to the meal, given it's a German tradition..."

"But, Oriko," Shinji pointed out, "Misato is the only one of us of age."

"If we can pilot the planets deadliest weapons of mass destruction, then why can't we take a drink every once in a while?" Oriko asked, "But not both at once, obviously. Friends don't let friends pilot drunk." she chuckled to herself.

"I'd still rather not." Shinji replied.

"Hey, Oriko!" Asuka called out from other room, "Why do you have this giant book filled with numbers in your closet?"

"That's my diary!" Oriko shouted back. "And that alone should tell you why I encoded it both Latin and an alphanumeric cypher!" she shook her head in disgust. "I swear, it's like living with four additional people. DINNER IS SERVED!"

Over the next couple days, the training continued with continual lack-of-progress, and Misato's house seemed increasingly cramped. Asuka had booted Shinji out of his bed and he was now sleeping in the closet Oriko had taken, and Oriko herself was sleeping on the couch. On the third day, they happened to have visitors. Four of them, precisely. Rei, Toji, Kensuke, and the class rep Hikari Horaki.

As they joined Oriko and Misato and watched Shinji and Asuka fail the dance synchronization for what, according to Oriko's count was the five thousand, four hundred and sixty seventh time, Rei turned to Oriko.

"How are you managing?" she asked.

Oriko sighed, "Not well." she said plainly, "If you know the term tsundere, she's like that but without the 'dere' part. I swear, when this is over..."

"Yes?" Misato asked.

"I'm buying us a bigger house." Oriko finished.

Misato laughed, "Very funny. Still..." she looked to the two of them and sighed.

BZZT.

_Five thousand, four hundred and sixty eight... _Oriko thought.

"Oh Vertdammit..." Asuka swore. "It's all his fault!" she shouted, pointing to Shinji, "I can never synchronize with this animated turnip!"

Oriko took a deep breath and stood up. "Asuka, let me show you something. Get off the mat."

Asuka hesitated but did so.

Oriko walked where she was standing. "Shinji, get ready. Misato, start the music, if you would."

As the music played, Oriko quickly matched Shinji's movements and the song was completed perfectly. Afterward, Oriko got back up and walked up to the dumbfounded Asuka.

"Listen, Asuka Langley Sohryu," she spoke firmly, "I may be backup, but I'm not out of the picture. I'm letting you team with my brother due to the fact you are deeply proud of being an EVA pilot and you should have a chance to show your abilities. However, your ego comes a distant second to destroying the monsters that our threatening the planet, so if you can't do this, I will have Misato retool the operation for the two of us and we'll kill the Seventh Angel without you. If you can't work in a team, then you have no place here and it's entirely possible Gendo Ikari will send you and your giant red robot back to Germany where it came from. Am I making myself _clear?"_

Asuka's face fell. "I can't handle this!" She cried and ran off to her room to break down in tears.

Oriko shook her head in disgust sat back down on the table. "I swear to God, that girl..."

"Uh, Hikari, Kensuke?" Toji asked, "Maybe we should get going."

Hikari nodded, however Kensuke paused and stated, "I'll be behind you in a bit."

Toji glanced at his buddy but left with Hikari.

"Oriko..." Shinji spoke.

"You alright?" Oriko asked.

"Would you be my partner in this battle?" Shinji asked, "I mean, she's just so mean to me and I just don't want to deal with her any more than I have to..."

Misato gave a worried look at Shinji and glanced at Oriko, "Should I?" she asked.

Oriko shook her head, "Unfortunately I cannot." she stated, "Asuka is the very definition of "Not a team player." And despite what I said, I'm pretty sure Gendo will be keeping her around for a long time. Regardless of how tiresome she is, she needs to learn how to work with people or we might all get killed, especially considering her reason for piloting EVA."

"What do you mean?" Shinji asked.

Oriko sighed, "I told you my purpose. To protect the world. That has not changed. But has yours, Shinji?"

Shinji considered that, "Well... originally I did it to earn my father's approval. But recently... I don't know, I guess I enjoy being able to help people."

"And you, Rei?" Oriko asked.

Rei was silent for a long moment. "I originally thought it was all I had." she finally stated, "But I no longer think that is the case. But I remain bonded to it, and I cannot change that bond."

Oriko nodded, "I read over Asuka's file. In fact, I read over all the files I was permitted to access. Ritsuko's, Misato's, Yours, Shinji, even my own. Rei didn't have a file, and mine was unusually thin. But if I am going to work with people, I should know all I can about them and Asuka..." she sighed, "That girl built her entire life around EVA. Ever since she was a child, everything she did was focused on getting into the program and becoming the Second Child. Which means her purpose is the one you thought you had, Rei. It really is all she has."

The room fell silent after that.

"I have confidence that if she feels like she'll be replaced, she will shape up and complete the mission." Oriko stated, "She has no other choice."

Kensuke cleared his throat, "Oriko, would it be alright if I talked with you in private?"

Oriko paused, "Very well, let's step outside."

The two left the apartment, and Oriko looked at her classmate. "You need something?"

"Yeah... Um...' Kensuke hesitated, "Willyougooutonadatewithme?"

"Will I... _what_?" Oriko asked, her tone halfway between finding the idea hilarious and being completely horrified.

"Well..." Kensuke looked around, "I just find you really, really, attractive. I mean, you act mean, but I get the impression you just act it, you aren't really. And the way you can knock pretty much anyone for a loop, physically like Toji or verbally like Asuka, I mean..."

Oriko chuckled, "Kensuke, why in the world would I want to out with you? You took photos of Asuka in her underwear and sold them all across the school!"

"Yeah, but I didn't take them of you!" Kensuke pointed out, "And considering your figure, well, that should say something."

Oriko glowered at him.

"I said something wrong, didn't I? Ok, backpedal! Backpedal" he put his hands out, "Look, I like girls with a bitchy side. I mean, not a real bitchy side but a fake bitchy side."

"You're digging your own grave, Kensuke." Oriko stated and sighed, "Look. I may not seem like it, but I have a lot of issues I still need to resolve. I had a lot of bad experiences with people close to me abandoning me or getting killed so I have major problems with intimacy. I honestly don't think I'm ready for a relationship at this stage of the game."

"It doesn't have to be a relationship." Kensuke replied, "Just a date. One date. And we'll see how it goes from there. I mean, I'd really like to hang out with you more but you're always with Rei. And there's nothing wrong with that, but I mean..."

Oriko pursed her lips, "If you think I'll put out on the first date..."

"I'm not assuming anything like that!" Kensuke cried, "I didn't take those photos of Asuka and sell them for any perverted reason, I did so because I'm broke as all hell and need any money I can get. My dad may be a NERV bridge tech, but he gets paid crap and with my mom's medical bills..." he sighed.

Oriko paused. "Tell me this, how good a hacker are you?"

"I broke NERVs encryption so that I could read my dad's files." Kensuke bragged. "It's how we were able to watch the last few fights."

Oriko nodded, "Then I want you to do something for me. I have my suspicions that the Magi supercomputers' security will be compromised at some point in the near future. I want you to make me a set of programs I can use to take advantage of that breach to create my own link into their systems and access classified files. If you do that, I will go on a date for you, and you will get to know something very personal about myself. Does that sound like a fair trade?"

Kensuke nodded eagerly, "Of course!" he cried.

"I think you can understand the magnitude of what I am asking you to do. This is essentially treason and I don't think I need to elaborate what will happen to us, and especially you, if we get caught." Oriko stated, "Still willing?"

Kensuke grinned, "Yes! Yes!"

"Very well then," Oriko stated, "Get going. You have three weeks to bring me the programs necessary. Don't breathe a word of this to anyone. Even Toji."

Kensuke nodded and ran off.

Oriko sighed, "There is no force in the universe more powerful than a horny teenager with a crush..." she mumbled, complete unaware of how completely right that statement truly was.

After the incident that soon became known around school as "How the Ice Queen completely pwned Asuka" (At least, that's how Toji described it though why he swapped the "o" in "owned" for a "p" was completely beyond everybody else who was in the room at the time), Asuka's ability to match Shinji's movements increased dramatically, for the simple fact she was actually trying to work with him instead of ignoring Misato's instructions and doing her own thing.

The day before the battle with the Angel, Shinji awoke in the middle of the night to shuffling noises in the other room. Initially thinking Oriko had woken up the middle of the night, he soon became aware of Asuka sleepwalking towards his cot and falling down next to him.

"Mommy..." he heard her whisper and saw a tear trickling from her eye. She was extremely close to him, close enough to kiss...

He quickly rejected the idea and got up and walked towards the living room, setting his mat on the floor next to the couch Oriko was sleeping on.

_Better safe than sorry._ He thought to himself. _I don't want to be sleeping anywhere near her when she wakes up. _ He put his head down on the pillow and prepared to go to sleep, only to hear frantic whispering coming from nearby.

Standing up, he became aware Oriko was talking to herself very faintly. He knew the right thing to do would be to move his mat to the other side of the room and go to sleep there, but he was very curious as to what she was saying.

The temptation eventually proved too much to resist and he leaned his ear towards her.

"I'm so sorry so sorry Kirika I couldn't save you I failed you and I needed a control system there was no other way to make it work and I'm so sorry if I had just been able to save you and hadn't had to take the gem so you wouldn't disappear on me but I couldn't save you and I miss you so much and I need you back there was nobody else who was there for me and I just-"

Suddenly Oriko's eyes jerked awake and she started at Shinji. Shinji let out a small yelp. "So-sorry." he stammered out.

"Oh, it's you." she chuckled, "I thought Asuka was going to murder me in my sleep or something." she yawned, "Yes, I talk to myself, nothing you need to be concerned about..."

"I'm sorry, I just..." Shinji stated.

"It's fine." Oriko stated, closing her eyes, "Go to sleep, will you? You fight for the fate of the planet tomorrow and you're going to need some rest."

Shinji nodded and picked up his mat and pillow and set it over on the other side of the room. _Like I'm going to get any sleep now..._ he thought to himself.

For several hours he stared at the ceiling. Here he thought his sister was this brilliant, untouchable girl, perfect for the task of piloting EVA. And... It was a mask. Apparently she was just as messed up inside as he was. Just much better at hiding it. She had mentioned she had lost a very dear friend. Most likely this "Kirika" girl she had been mumbling about. But what had happened? He considered the possibilities for a long time, before eventually drifting into unconsciousness.

Before the battle the next morning, he decided to check into his sister's file, however when he pulled it up, he found there was very little in it. A couple notes about her adoptive parents, her father being a prominent politician and her mother a diplomatic representative from the US. Their subsequent deaths, Theresa having died a decade ago in a still-unsolved murder and Hisaomi having hung himself after being exposed for corruption four years ago. A few notes about her having entered the EVA program shortly after her father's death, details of her dual citizenship, and a few scarce references to a "Kirika Kure." However, there was very little he could determine about Kirika, except that in one passage she was mentioned as being her girlfriend and her status was listed as "Missing, presumed deceased."

Shinji wondered if he was pressing too far into his sister's private business. However, something was bugging him. Oriko had mumbled something about needing a control system in between her apologies to Kirika, but how would the two relate...

And then a memory flashed in his mind. How, the very first time he was called to pilot his Evangelion it had moved on its own accord to defend him, and how, when he had been in danger during his first battle with an Angel, the Unit had gone berserk on its own accord.

A chill ran up and down his spin. There was very little he knew about the Evangelions, and nothing he knew about how they were created, but what if... what if they were alive. What if someone was_ inside the EVA while he was piloting it?_

He shuddered at the thought. No, that's not possible. There's no way you could put a person inside these things. There had to be some other explanation. There _had_ to be...

It was at that point the signal sounded for him to get to the cage to perform the mission.

The resulting dance between Unit 01, Unit 02, and the Seventh Angel took one minute and ten seconds, and by the end the Angel's two cores were shattered and Asuka's EVA had fallen on top of his in a rather undignified fashion.

As the holophone built into his Unit rang, he sighed and answer it, ready for what he was sure would be the next of very many arguments with the pilot calling him.


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter Five.

"I have good news, everyone." Oriko announced during the next dinner they had as a ragtag, dysfunctional family unit of sorts.

Asuka snorted, "You leaving the EVA program?"

"No..." Oriko sighed, "You remember how during our training, I stated that I would buy us a bigger house?"

Misato nearly dropped her chopsticks, "You were actually serious?" she asked.

"Gimme a break." Asuka stated, "I doubt you know the slightest thing about houses, and there's no way you'd be able to buy one! I mean-"

"Asuka..." Oriko interrupted, "Take a look at something." Pulling out her wallet, she removed a slip of paper and handed it to the other pilot, "This is my bank account balance as of last Monday."

Asuka glanced down and spat her drink all over the table. "'Ach du Scheiße!" she shouted, "How in the-"

"Hisaomi Mikuni was an exceptionally wealthy man." Oriko stated.

Misato picked up the receipt and blinked, "This is more money than I made in the last ten years of my life." she remarked. "Anyway, you were saying?"

"Anyway," Oriko continued, "I have found a house that should be sufficient for our needs. The distances to school and Geofront entry points are comparable and I made sure it was in good repair. I would like your permission, Misato, to conclude the deal so we can move into a less cramped space."

"What's the bright idea picking it out, huh?" Asuka snapped, "I want a say in where we live!"

Oriko sighed, "To be quite honest, Asuka, I would be perfectly happy if you didn't move with us. In fact, I'd prefer it if you didn't. I am permitting you to join us because I am gracious, even towards ingrates who continually try my patience."

She cleared her throat, "Let me tell you something, Asuka Langley Sohryu, you are not nearly as "great" as you think you are. While your sync scores may be seven points above mine, five points above my brothers, and twelve above Rei's, we were able to successful execute the plan to destroy the Fifth Angel without any major setbacks because we worked as a team despite only having gotten to know each other a few days previous. Had one of us screwed up, the operation would have been much more difficult and have very long odds, and had two of us screwed up it would have failed completely and humanity would be extinct. Meanwhile, the minute you come here you run off halfcocked and make NERV look like a complete fool. It took the better part of a day for Misato and I to clear the paperwork from the screw up _you_ caused."

She took a breath and continued, "You have the highest sync ratio of us, but only by a few points and I bet you a thousand yen that in another two or three angels, Shinji will pass you and I won't be far behind him. And quite frankly, sync ratio means very little compared knowing how to stop these things. The person here who is the tactical genius is Misato. She's the one who came up with Operation Yashima, she's the one who figured out how you and Shinji could stop the one that attacked you in the ocean despite only having B-type equipment, and she's the one who ran into a reactor flooded with radiation without hesitation to save a city of five million residents. If she had the ability to pilot these things, she'd be a better pilot than all of us combined simply because she's _smart_."

There was stunned silence, Misato's face flushed heavily. "Do you really mean that?" she asked softly.

"Of course." Oriko stated, "Man's greatest weapon isn't the Evangelions, it's his brain. And right now, your brain is what has let humanity survive the last four attacks, five if you count the fact you reached out to Shinji so he'd have the courage to actually get in the EVA before the first fight."

"Yeah, well I completed college!" Asuka snapped, "I may not be at her level, but I'm better than you!"

"You completed a bachelor's degree in engineering" Oriko stated, "Decent, however I am already working on my PHD in clinical psychology. I completed my graduate thesis two weeks ago on how rejection by a teenagers peers can permanently alter his or her growth. I am only in school with you because it would be difficult to manage the workload of college while fighting giant monstrosities from god-knows-where. The minute they are all dead, I'll be transferring and I estimate I will be able to complete it in three years."

She got up from her chair and leaned over at Asuka, "And do not say for one moment that you are better than me. You have a slight advantage in sync ratio, but only slight. And in every other aspect you are far, far behind. My intelligence quotient was measured at one hundred and seventy three. I can sew, paint, draw, cook, garden, woodcraft and do ballet. I have good relations with Shinji, Rei, and Misato, where you antagonize every person you come across for no discernible reason, and you saw how much money I have in the bank. I am better than you in every. Single. Way. Miss Sohryu, so don't dare to think you're on my level. And finally..." she cleared her throat. "Mein Deutsch ist fehlerfrei und ich kenne mich hervorragend mit eurer Kultur aus."

Asuka was stunned into silence, her face slightly ashen.

Shinji stared at his sister who was sitting down from her extended tirade. _She's deliberately trying to antagonize Asuka, isn't she? _He thought.

"Anyway..." Oriko stated, "Permission to-"

"Granted." Misato stated.

"Thank you." Oriko stated, "It took some doing, but I finally managed to locate one with five bedrooms. One for you, One for Shinji, one for me, one for Asuka, and one for Rei if she decides she wants to move in with us."

"That's like a mansion..." Shinji stated.

"For us, certainly." Oriko replied and motioned to Asuka, "She'd probably dismiss it as pathetically small compared to whatever she lived in in Germany."

Asuka shot Oriko a look of pure hate.

After the move in, Misato had suggested on a shopping trip to pick up some addition to their new, much bigger house.

"What about these?" Oriko asked, picking up a china plate, "I like the leaf design."

Misato shook her head, "There's metal on the rims, see? Not much use if you can't put them in the microwave."

Oriko nodded and set them back down, "Admittedly a point. Where'd Asuka get off to? I would have thought she'd nag us to bring her along."

"Kaji took her on a separate shopping trip." Misato replied, "Don't tell her this, but I'm glad she's out of our hair for a bit."

"Oriko," Shinji spoke up, "I was wondering. When you said you bought a house with an extra bedroom so Rei could move in... do you think she'll take you up on the offer?"

"Not at this time." Oriko stated, shaking her head sadly, 'I asked. However, I think she will reconsider at some point in the future. Just give her time."

"There's something I should bring up." Misato stated, "I have to tell Asuka this too, but I figure it would be best if she was informed separately. About the class trip to Okinawa..."

Shinji glanced at Misato, "We're not going, are we?"

"I'm afraid not." Misato admitted. "Your job requires you to remain on base in case of an Angel attack. I am sorry."

"It's alright." Shinji assured her, "I kinda expected that would be the case."

"Do you think it would really be necessary for all four of us to be here, though?" Oriko asked, "Between Rei, Asuka and myself, I would expect we could handle any attack that might come along if my brother would like a vacation. He's been through a lot."

Misato seemed to consider it, but Shinji spoke up.

"Don't worry about it." Shinji replied, "Asuka can't have all the glory now, can she?" he chuckled and shook his head, "Actually, I'm just not one for traveling that much."

Misato gave a small smile. Oriko nodded.

"I was wondering though," Shinji turned to Oriko, "You said you came here from America, right?"

Oriko nodded, "That is accurate. I left Japan and moved there shortly after my adoptive father's death to enter the EVA program. The pilots for the Japanese branch had already been selected, and I had dual citizenship, so it looked like my best option."

"How does that work, exactly?" Shinji asked.

Oriko paused, "You don't know? Figures nobody would have told you." she sighed, "Yui Ikari gave birth to us in America, and the way their laws are set up, if a foreign national is in the US when they deliver, the babies are considered to be American citizens as well as that of their originating country. Which means you have that status too, so you could move there when all this is over if you prefer."

Shinji glanced at Misato, who nodded. ""What's America like?" he asked.

Oriko rubbed her forehead, "Not in good shape, honestly. The EVA program is UN funded and ostensibly an international effort, but in practice it is funded almost exclusively by America and Japan, with a smattering of contributions from other nations. The process of creating and maintaining the Evangelions takes up about two thirds of America's defense program which compromises the vast majority of the country's budget."

Shinji nodded, "Sounds rough."

"Very." Oriko stated, "A lot of Americans deeply resent the fact the Evangelions are all being deployed to Japan despite them doing the bulk of the financing. I had to pull some admittedly underhanded moves to get in the program and achieve my status as a pilot."

Misato raised an eyebrow, "I admit I never gave much thought to what the selection process is like. Can you tell me more?"

Oriko hesitated, "Well, in order to get in, I approached the head of the American branch of NERV, Edward McConner. He had a rather deep resentment of the Japanese branch, and Gendo Ikari in particular. He feels Gendo isn't working with the rest of NERV as well as he could be and is pursuing his own agenda. I was able to convince him that I would be invaluable in determining whether anything my father is doing could prove adverse to humanity and stopping him if so."

Shinji glanced at Misato, then at Oriko. "What do you think he's up to?"

"That remains to be determined." Oriko stated. "Do you think that chair would look good in the living room?"

One thing about Misato Katsuragi is that she has good instincts. And her instincts proved correct in regards to informing Asuka of her inability to go on a class trip separately from the other pilots.

"What do you MEAN I can't go on the trip?" Asuka shouted. "WHY NOT?"

"It's part of your job." Misato stated simply.

"You know" Oriko stated, "You could always quit and leave it to the three of us. We'd be more than capable of handling it without you."

"I didn't ask for your input, Miss Ice Queen!" Asuka snapped. "Misato, why is it we're always the one who has to defend against them?! Any good officer knows the best defense is a good offense, right?!"

"But, Asuka." Shinji spoke up, "How would we find the Angels in order to attack them?"

"SHUT UP!" Asuka shouted.

"Look, thing of this as an opportunity to catch up on your studies." Misato stated, "I've seen your report card, Asuka, and I'm very disappointed. You need to work on yours too, Shinji."

Shinji's lowered his head. Oriko patted him on the shoulder.

"Alphanumeric grading scales are stupid anyway!" Asuka shouted "This sucks!" she turned and went to go storm into her room.

"Hmmm, what do you have there, Shinji?" Asuka asked a bit later, walking up to him as he typed on a computer terminal.

"Basic physics primer." he stated and then turned around, turning slightly pale at the slight of Asuka in a highly revealing bikini.

"What? If I can't go diving in Okinawa, why not go diving here?" she grinned and leaned over looking at the papers on the table, "You can't even solve a simple problem like this?" She tapped a few keys on the laptop and stated, "There, all done."

"How can you solve problems like this and not make good grades on your tests?" Shinji asked.

"Language barrier." Asuka said dismissively, "I just haven't learned all of the kanji yet."

"You moved here without learning the native language?" Oriko spoke up as she walked into the room, carrying a pile of papers. "Bist du blöd oder was?"

Asuka spun around and glared at the silver-haired girl, who was approaching in a one piece white bathing suit. "That's my line." she said nastily, "Bitch."

"I thought you were done with your homework..." Shinji remarked, trying to keep his eyes on his laptop.

"I was. This is a personal project." Oriko stated, "Extended series of Punnett squares."

"And what would you need that for?" Asuka asked derisively, "Genetic diseases?"

"No, it's because I have silver hair." Oriko replied, "And for the life of me, I can't figure out how in the world I could have it."

"You mean it's not dyed?" Shinji asked.

"Not in the least." Oriko replied, "But that aside, would you prefer me to help you with your homework or outperform Asuka in a swim race?"

"Uh, let's go with the homework..." Shinji replied, trying to shy away from the furious look on the redheads face.

A bit later, Misato and numerous members of the NERV bridge crew managed to make a most interesting discovery inside a nearby volcano.

"That thing in the egg is an Angel?" Shinji asked.

"Yes." Ritsuko stated, "The object of this mission is to retrieve the chrysalis, or, if we fail, destroy it. Asuka, we will be sending Unit 02 into the volcano. Shinji, you will be her backup. Rei, Oriko, you will be remaining here on standby."

Asuka gave a nasty grin to Oriko, "Aw, poor Oriko. Never gets any fun, does she?"

"Asuka." Oriko stated, "Unlike you, I am not in this for glory. As long as the Angels are defeated, it does not matter who kills them." she turned away, Shinji noticing she was frowning slightly as she did so.

After witnessing Asuka in a rather embarrassing heat-resistant suit and many wails and tears from the redhead over the exosuit her EVA was in, the mission began.

"Depth is four hundred." Maya stated. "Four fifty. Five hundred."

"Are you alright Oriko?" Misato asked.

"I'm fine." Oriko stated, "I don't mind being on the bench."

"Are you sure?" Misato asked, "I'd be right furious if I were in your position. Put all that work into getting into the program and not get to show it."

"I am not driven by vengeance like you are." Oriko replied.

"Five-fifty." Maya stated.

"I want to ask you a question, Misato." Oriko stated, "If it was possible to defeat all the Angels, but to do so Shinji Ikari would be completely and utterly broken to the point where he no longer saw the point of living, would it be worth it to you?"

Misato did not answer.

"Six hundred." Maya stated, "Seven hundred. Eight hundred. Nine hundred. One thousand."

"If the Angels are not destroyed, humanity will go extinct." Misato finally stated.

"Depth is one thousand fifty. We are over the maximum safety depth."

"Continue." Misato stated.

"You answered a different question than I asked." Oriko stated, "I asked, is vengeance worth sacrificing Shinji?"

"Depth is one thousand three hundred. Our estimated depth." Maya stated.

"Asuka, what do you see?" Misato stated.

"Nothing." Came the response over the airwaves.

"Targets velocity is not matching our predication." Jack stated.

"Descend further." Misato stated, "Oriko, if the Angels aren't defeated, Shinji will be only one of many who die."

"You still did not answer my question." Oriko stated, "And you are aware you're risking Asuka's life by continuing this?"

"I'm fine!" Asuka shouted, "Shut your pie hole, Ice Queen and keep me going!"

There was a brief silence and then Misato stated, "If you must know, Oriko. Yes. To me, the destruction of the Angels is worth any cost."

"We have reached the new estimated target depth." Jack stated.

"Any cost..." Misato repeated, "Asuka, do you see it?"

"No... Wait! There it is!" Asuka cried.

Oriko watched as the bridge crew guided Unit 02 into capturing the Angel. _Are you trying to convince me, Misato, or yourself?_

Of course, it still wasn't over, and on the way back to the surface, the Angel began to hatch prematurely in the cage, forcing Unit 02 to enter battle with it in the lava pit.

Oriko barely paid attention. As much as she hated to admit it, Asuka had struck a nerve. It wasn't not being able to fight with the Angels so much as the fact that between emotional maintenance of her brother, encouraging Rei's development, terrorizing Asuka so she'd pick on her instead of her brother, and the endless tests she had to go through as an EVA pilot despite not being on the front lines, she _didn't_ get any fun. She was just too damn busy to have a chance.

She was fourteen, and essentially working a 24/7 job as an unpaid psychiatrist. Which wouldn't bother her too much if she had someone to come to with her issues. But Shinji needed her as an anchor, a rock in his tumultuous see of emotions, and Rei needed her a teacher to connect her to normal people.

And there was also the fact she couldn't even hint to anyone she was playing a much bigger game than they realized.

Eventually, the Eight Angel was defeated, and Asuka avoided a near-death experience thanks to a quick save by Shinji.

As the pilots left, Oriko turned to Rei. "Can I ask a favor?"

"You can ask." Rei replied.

Oriko hesitated, "Would it be alright with you if I could stay over, just for tonight? I just need a day away from that damnable redhead."

"I see no reason to refuse." Rei stated.

Oriko gave a sigh of relief. While she would normally be averse to living in a place as rundown as Rei's, she desperately needed a break.

When she entered Rei's apartment, she noticed two things.

The first was that the blunette had apparently done some major cleaning since she was last over. Everything she owned had been organized and shelved to give a presentable appearance and there was not a piece of trash anywhere.

And the second was that the entire west wall of the living room had been covered from top to bottom in pinned up drawings.

(Translation: "I know perfect German and have excellent knowledge of your culture.")


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter Six.

The morning of October 2nd, 2015, was relatively uneventful, except for one occurrence in the slums of Tokyo-3...

"You have the device ready, Edward?" the tall man with the tattoos asked his partner.

"Almost, Dave." Edward replied, "These Japanese bastards won't know what hit them..."

"Excuse me." a voice stated, and the two men whirled.

"Gah! It's that silver-haired chick!" Dave cried and pulled out a gun, ready to fire.

However, Oriko happened to fire first. The first bullet struck Dave square in the chest, and the second pierced Edwards forehead and went out the other side.

"You should have picked a better area of town to instigate terrorism." Oriko stated. "Would have made it harder for me to make your deaths look like a drug deal gone bad..."

Walking over to the small metal box she picked it up and looked it over. "Hm, portable electromagnetic disruptor. Might come in handy at some point. Now I need to get Misato's gun back to the apartment before she notices it's gone missing..."

The middle of the day, proved rather eventful due to the unexpected arrival of an Angel off the coast of the city and its immediate rush inwards.

However, despite the immediate panic that invariably seized the city, the Ninth Angel turned out, unexpectedly, to be significantly weaker than any of the preceding Angels and was quickly eliminated by the deployed Units 01 and 02. The pilots of Units 00 and 04 were not even present in the battle as they had been farther from the base than the other pilots at the time of the Angel's arrival.

The evening returned to the uneventful qualities shared by the morning, except in the lives of a particular silver-haired EVA pilot and a brown haired boy who had promised a date by said pilot in exchange for certain computer programs she would later be using for activities unauthorized by the governmental agency employing her...

As Oriko looked over the programs on her laptop, Kensuke spoke up. "So, whadaya think?"

"I think..." Oriko stated, scratching her chin, "You have done an exceptional job and I am immensely impressed by the fact you got these finished a week and a half before the due date. And with a decent user interface as well."

"I have a gift." Kensuke replied, grinning.

"Yes, you certainly do." Oriko stated. "You have more than earned your reward. Did you have a particular activity planned for today?"

"Well, since I'm assuming you don't have the authority to get me into NERV HQ and try your EVA out..." Kensuke began.

"I don't," Oriko replied simply.

"I was thinking we'd go to the movie theaters and catch a screening of Space Pirates vs. Ninja Robot Zombies!" Kensuke exclaimed excitedly.

No emotion crossed Oriko's face, but inwardly she was thinking. _Maybe I should break him into NERV HQ after all? I mean, seriously..._

"I mean, the initial run was so short and I was stunned beyond belief when they announced they would be giving it a second chance! And in 3D no less!" Kensuke cried happily.

"The run was short because it completely bombed at the box office and was universally panned by critics." Oriko stated.

"Yes, but it's a great cult movie!" Kensuke replied.

"You do realize why they're called "cult" movies, right?" Oriko asked

"No, why?" Kensuke asked

Oriko paused, "Never mind. You've more than earned the right to choose a movie. If that is what you want, we'll watch it." _I mean, it can't be any worse than being boiled alive in my entry plug by a particle laser, right?_

As it turned out, there was a reason why Space Pirates vs. Ninja Robot Zombies had won two golden raspberries and had a critic rating of 0%

_I was wrong._ Oriko thought midway through the movie. _This is definitely worse than being boiled alive in my entry plug. _

"BLARG!" the bright green warrior on the screen shouted, "Super AI will NEVER Take this ship! NEVER!"

"YOU MUST RELENT!" the giant steel automaton replied in a static-y monotone voice, "Super AI is benevolent! You will SUBMIT! SUBMIT!"

"I will smash you to bits!" the warrior shouted and charged at the robot, banging a pair of swords against its steel carapace, "Our ship is our home! Retreat or perish! PERISH!"

"DOES NOT COMPUTE!" the robot cried and fired a series of energy lasers across the screen. "AI will win! WIN!"

Oriko turned her gaze from the screen to Kensuke who was staring at it in wonder. _How can such a brilliant programmer be such an idiot in so many other aspects of his life? Is it too much to ask for two Angel attacks in one day? Please?_

Two and a half hours of excruciating psychological torture later…

"So, how'd you like it?" Kensuke asked, excitedly, "Awesome, right?"

"Fuel for the Angel of Birds." Oriko replied, and shook her head, "Seriously."

"Angel of what?" Kensuke asked, "The Angels have aspects?"

Oriko sighed, "Forget it. Anyway..."

"Want me to lead you home now?" Kensuke asked.

"Not yet. I still have to fulfill the other half of my end of our bargain. I told you I would let you know something very personal about myself, remember?" Oriko asked

"Well, yeah, but I'm not really sure why we couldn't do that on the way home." Kensuke replied.

"Because if I simply told you, you would think I was insane." Oriko replied, her voice getting soft. "Follow me..."

Kensuke took a long look at Oriko. Her voice had completely lost its harsh qualities and sounded... sad. But he did as she instructed, and the two walked down the streets of Tokyo-3, a thick fog gathering around them.

"Since the beginning of time," Oriko said solemnly as they ventured into a particularly heavy fog bank, "There have always been those who are chosen to bear all the curses of the world in exchange for a single, solitary, miracle." she paused mid-step and turned to Kensuke, "Tell me, Kensuke, if you could be granted one wish, any wish you wanted, what would you choose?"

"To be an EVA pilot!" he stated eagerly.

Oriko sighed and rubbed her eyes, "I suppose that was a question with an extremely obvious answer... Kensuke. Being a pilot is not fun or joyful. It is a depressing, miserable experience and you will see soon enough exactly how foolish such a wish would be." she turned away from him and continued into the fog. "And the life of a magical girl is even worse."

"A wait, what?" Kensuke asked, "You mean like those shoujo manga things?"

"Did you ever wonder why I went into the program?" Oriko asked, ignoring the question, "And more to the point, how I managed to become a pilot? I had an edge. I was given the chance at a wish in exchange for a lifetime of battle, and I took it. And my wish... My wish was to know the meaning of my life."

Kensuke stopped midstep and stared at Oriko in fascination as she also stopped, the fog growing thicker around them, as she pulled off a silver ring engraved with runes off her finger.

"The miasma is thick tonight and _they_ shall be here soon." she stated, "Watch closely, Kensuke, as you are about to see something very few humans get to see."

"Oriko, you're kind of freaking me- holy..." Kensuke began, but never finished. There was a brilliant flash of light and in a moment, Oriko transformed. A brilliant white dress adorned her body and tall white hat perched on top of her head, and on her neck a brilliant white gemstone, akin to a diamond, glimmered in the dark light.

Kensuke was struck speechless. "You're..." he began... "Beautiful..."

"I was granted a gift." Oriko stated, "But magic has a cost, and if I expend my power without replenishing it, I vanish. Disappear. Never to be seen again. Nobody knows why magical girls meet that fate, but none can avoid it. All they can do is postpone the inevitable for as long as they are willing to fight." she stared off in the distance, "They are here. Be on your guard."

Kensuke tensed, and in that moment, the fog cleared. Tokyo-3 had vanished and the two of them stood in a distorted landscape akin to a desert, black clouds in sky beneath a brilliant orange star.

"Where are we?" he asked, looking around, "I knew I should have brought my camera."

"This is where the wraiths dwell." Oriko stated. "Few humans who arrive in here make it out alive. And it is my job as a magi to slay these monsters. As long as I do, I will survive..."

A grey skinned figure adorned in a white robe appeared from nothingness. Oriko gestured and a series of blue spheres flew out of her hands and smashed into the figure. It disappeared and two other similar figures manifested.

A pair of spheres appeared on the ground and Oriko stepped onto them, then ascended into the sky. Flinging spheres into the wraiths, having them disintegrate only to have more reappear. This went on for several minutes, with Kensuke unable to do anything except stare in wonder, until another figure, similar to the ones vanquished but much larger, appeared in the landscape.

Oriko didn't hesitate, and summoned an immense barrage to strike the figure, it lunged at her only for her to weave out of its way. It swung its fists again and again, only to strike empty air where Oriko had been moments before. Eventually, her attacks proved too much for it and it fell under the assault.

As it fell, the landscape disappeared and the two materialized back into Tokyo-3, Oriko leaning down to the ground to pick up a series of black cubes on the pavement.

"That was amazing." Kensuke stated, "Could I come with you when you go out next to fight these things?"

Oriko shook her head, "It is too dangerous." she said firmly and looked at him with sadness in her eyes, "There is a saying among us magi."

"Don't forget.

Always, somewhere,

Someone is fighting for you.

As long as you remember her.

You are not alone."

Oriko shook her head, "I do not know where it comes from or what it means, or who the "her" mentioned in the stanza is. But ultimately I have found it is simply untrue. My only friend, Kirika Kure... I lost her years ago. I have met few other magi, and those I have met never stayed in my life. I am alone."

Kensuke paused, then walked up to Oriko and hugged her, "You don't have to be." he stated, "You know, ever since you got here, I got the impression you were deliberately trying to drive others away, but I never understood why. But I think I get it now. On one hand, you're scared of letting others get close because they might hurt you, but on the other hand, you're also scared to get close to others because if you get killed, it'll hurt them."

Oriko paused, a tad surprised how perceptive Kensuke was. She had known the first part, but until now hadn't given thought to the second. "That's very accurate." she finally stated, "You're a lot better with people than I first gave you credit for."

Kensuke nodded and let go of Oriko, "I don't want you to feel like you don't have anyone in your life." he stated firmly, "No matter what, you can always come to me for support. I like to think I'm a lot more emotionally stable than most of my peers." he chuckled nervously.

Oriko nodded, "Thank you." she said softly.

"And, well..." Kensuke grinned and scratched his head, "There's the question that's been beginning to be asked this entire night. Will you be my girlfriend?"

Oriko paused. She knew he was going to ask it, but she hadn't been prepared for the fact she would actually want to accept it.

"Kensuke..." Oriko said softly, "I'd like to say yes, but there's a problem..." she sighed, "I'm a lesbian."

Kensuke's face fell.

"I'm sorry." Oriko stated, "But no matter what happens, you'll always be a very dear friend of mine. And you can guess that's something I don't say about very many people."

Kensuke brightened a bit at that. "Yeah that's true. I don't have many friends myself aside from Toji and your brother either."

"Maybe I can help you out with your dating skills so that the next girl you want to get with says yes." Oriko suggested, "You're good with people but terrible with women. I spent that movie hoping an Angel would attack just so I'd have an excuse to leave the theater." she shook her head.

Kensuke chucked, "Yeah that may have been a bad choice on my part. Seriously..." he shook his head, "Shall I walk you home, then?"

Oriko gave a smile, "Of course. That's one thing you should do for a lady, after all."


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven.

"Oriko," Misato spoke unexpectedly one morning as the silver-haired girl was getting ready for school, "I was wondering something..."

"Yes, Misato." Oriko stated, "Beer really is that bad for your health."

Misato laughed, "Not that! No, what I meant was..." she sighed, "What you said to me a few weeks ago, when Shinji and Asuka were practicing for the Seventh Angel... About if I could pilot..."

"Ah," Oriko stated, "I meant every word, if that is what you were wondering. You could outperform us all by leaps and bounds. You have determination, the ability to coordinate, military training and an incredible brain. You would be optimal for the job."

Misato blushed slightly, "You know... that's probably the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me..."

"It is, but not for the reason you are interpreting it." Oriko stated, "When I say that, I am complimenting your skill as a leader and soldier. You are using it to play into your revenge fantasies against the Angels." she shook her head, "They are not the same thing."

Misato paused at that.

"I am fully aware of your history," Oriko stated, "Your issues with your father, being at ground zero of Second Impact, being mute, all of it. But vengeance is not a laudable goal and it can cause people to make rash and possibly stupid decisions."

Misato sighed, "This is about what happened in the volcano, wasn't it?"

Oriko nodded, "Yes," she stated, "If the exosuit encompassing her EVA had broken, which it very well could have given you had her lowered at, the Eight Angel would have attacked anyway and we would have had to deal with it, and all subsequent Angels minus one pilot and one Evangelion. And I would suspect you would have had a great deal of guilt from causing her death that would have impacted your ability to command."

Misato paused, "I'm surprised you are concerned about her, considering how much you tear into her."

"Call it an unorthodox form of psychotherapy." Oriko stated, "Asuka Langley Sohryu is a thick suit of armor held together by a single bolt. Were that bolt to fall out, which it would, considering how things are going, the armor would collapse to reveal an empty shell inside."

"Soooo, you're pissing her off to try and help her?" Misato chuckled at the idea, "How exactly does that work?"

Oriko sighed, "Don't tell her this, alright? I am deliberately antagonizing her and showing her up at every opportunity for two reasons. One is that she does not focus on my brother, the second is that she sees me as the enemy, someone to beat. Eventually, she will beat me, and at that point I am hoping she realize she was focusing on the wrong thing all along."

Oriko picked up her bag and then added, "As tiresome as she is, she is still my coworker and there will come a point where we need her help. Anyway, I need to go."

"Hey Oriko?" Kensuke happened to ask during a break between classes a few days later.

"Yes?" Oriko replied, looking up from the lunch she was eating.

"You know Misato got a promotion, right?" Kensuke asked, "Well, I was wondering if you'd help me throw a party for her."

Oriko smiled, "Good job." she stated, "Yes, I was planning one myself, but I wanted to see if you'd come up with the idea on your own. A good man always remembers special occasions for important women in his life..." she paused and then added, "Don't ask out Misato, got that?"

Kensuke snorted, "No! I mean, yes! Really, she's not my type at all." He chuckled, "Though you should see how much pictures of her go for..."

Oriko sighed, "Quit the erotic photo business. It'd drive away any girl you try to chase. If it'll help out, I'll pay your mom's medical bills."

Kensuke's eyes widened in astonishment, "But the treatment price for stage three cancer is-"

"I can afford it." Oriko stated, "I bought our family the house we're now at."

"Really?" Kensuke asked, "I would have thought Misato..."

"She doesn't get paid nearly as much as you'd think." Oriko stated. "Anyway, why don't you see if Toji and Hikari will come, I'll have Rei join us."

"Do you really think Rei would enjoy a party though?" Kensuke asked, "She doesn't seem like the type."

"I think she would." Oriko stated, "She's not as different as you probably think, one just needs to know how to talk to her to get her to open up."

There was an unusually long pause as Kensuke considered that, then nodded, "Right then."

"Congratulations, Misato!" Toji, Kensuke, Hikari and Asuka cried in union once the party started

"Thank you all." Misato said, grinning and patted Shinji on the back, the boy at a bit of a loss for words. "You alright?"

"Just wondering where Oriko is." he said softly.

"Oh, that bitch is probably hanging out with Wondergirl." Asuka remarked, "I mean-"

"I'll take you kindly not to speak about Oriko Mikuni like that." Kensuke spoke up, his voice holding a tone of barely restrained anger.

"Oh, what do you care," Hikari replied dismissively, "Nobody likes that girl anyway. I'm glad she isn't here, really. Brings everyone down simply by being nearby. I honestly hope she gets killed next time she gets sent out-"

To everyone shock, Shinji Ikari stood up at that moment with sudden force and leaned over the table to glower at Hikari.

"I'm going to have to ask you to leave." he stated, his tone holding a form of icy fury characteristic of his sister.

Everyone present, even Asuka, were stunned into silence by the sudden and intense display of a previously unknown backbone present in the Third Child.

"I said _leave_." he repeated sternly, his eyes shooting daggers at the class representative.

Hikari stared at him in slight horror, before nodding and quickly making her way out the door.

"Damn, Shinji..." Toji remarked.

"Why'd you do that, you jerk?" Asuka snapped, "She's like my only friend around here and you made her leave! I outta kick your ass for that!"

"Nobody, and I mean _nobody_, talks about my sister like that." Shinji stated, a note of hate present in his voice, then sat back down. "Can we continue?" he then asked more pleasantly, "I'd like this to be a fun occasion."

"Uh, right." Misato stammered. "Anyway, um..."

Kensuke leaned over to Shinji and whispered, "Nice job."

"I don't really know what came over myself there." Shinji whispered back, "Christ, that was like the time I had to fight with you two in my entry plug."

"I liked it." Kensuke whispered, "Really, you should show that side of yourself more often."

At that point the door flung open and Oriko and Rei walked in. "Sorry we're late." Oriko stated, holding up a covered dish, "Took longer to bake the cake than I expected. Hope you all like red velvet... Where's Hikari?"

"He made her leave!" Asuka shouted, pointing at Shinji, "That stupid jerk made her leave! And it's all your fault, Ice Queen!"

"Wait." Oriko stated, holding up the hand that wasn't carrying the dish, "Is this correct? Hikari left because of something my brother said?"

Shinji attempted to shrink down into his seat so far that he'd disappear, then Kensuke spoke up.

"That is accurate." he stated, "Hikari made a comment to the effect of wanting you to get killed and Shinji, well..."

"He stood up for you and insisted Hikari remove herself." Misato finished. "Good work, by the way."

Oriko blinked and set the cake on the table, "Well, let's have a round of applause for Shinji Ikari, who managed to do something even more impressive than enacting Operation Yashima on a ten hour timetable." she began clapping her hand and Toji, Kensuke and Misato followed suit.

"Impressive?!" Asuka cried in anger, "How about diving into an active volcano to capture a live Angel?"

"Asuka, the only thing you have managed to impress me with is how you managed to get a college degree with the emotional maturity of a four-year old." Oriko responded, "Raise your hands, who else thinks Asuka is an immature, emotionally unstable brat?"

Toji and Kensuke raised their hands and then Rei followed suit, Shinji glanced at them, then at Oriko and then nervously raised his own. Misato attempted to suppress a chuckle, but failed.

"I HATE YOU ALL!" Asuka shouted and then ran to her room and slammed the door.

"I believe this means she will miss out on the cake." Rei stated.

"Hey, you all hear that?" Toji called out, "Rei made a funny!" and began laughing.

There was a round of chuckles.

"Did I do something wrong?" Rei asked.

"No. You did great." Oriko replied, then leaned in and whispered, "Don't mind Toji, he's an idiot. Kensuke is pretty decent though."

Rei nodded and they sat down to eat.

The morning of the Tenth Angel attack, Oriko had a dream. It was very rare she dreamed at all, but this one was extraordinarily clear and vivid. She stood on a grassy plane, a large city visible in the distance.

"You are doing well." she heard someone say behind her, and she turned to see a teenage girl, about her age looking at her. Her hair was a pitch back with a bright red ribbon tied in it and she had a weary look on her face, as if she had been through a great battle. As Oriko looked at her, she couldn't help but get the feeling she knew the girl from somewhere, but she didn't have any idea well.

"Thank you." Oriko responded, "I hope I can keep it up... I know your voice, don't I?"

The girl didn't respond.

"The Fifth Angel." Oriko stated, "When I was in the hospital bed. Wasn't that you?"

"Yes." came the response, "We cannot join you on that world, but we can manifest in some other ways."

"I'm dreaming, aren't I?" Oriko asked, "This is a dream and I'm... where?"

There was no answer, instead the girl stated, "She is fighting for you."

"Who is?" Oriko asked.

"Hope." the girl gave a small but noticeable smile at that.

"Does hope have a name?" Oriko asked rhetorically, "Who are you, anyway?"

"I am Homura Akemi." the raven-haired girl replied, "And she... she is known to us as-"

At that moment, Oriko woke with a start to the sound of the alarm sounding an Angel's arrival.

The briefing for this mission turned out to be rather simple as well as completely unbelievable.

"You want us to catch it in our hands?" Asuka cried, "You must be kidding!"

"Am I correct in assuming I am now back on the combat roster?" Oriko asked.

"Correct." Misato stated "With Commander Ikari on a trip to Antarctica, I am reinstating your role as an active pilot."

Asuka shot Oriko a look of intense hate while Shinji gave her a worried look.

"The angel is essentially a mass driver." Misato stated, "You will use your EVAs and AT fields to catch the impact."

"What are our odds?" Rei asked.

Misato didn't answer and closed her eyes.

"That bad, huh?" Shinji asked. Misato nodded.

"You can refuse to do it if you wish." There was a pause and she then added, "The regulations state you are to write out a will."

"Not gonna die just yet." Asuka replied.

"I see no need to do so." Rei stated

Shinji shook his head. "I'm with Asuka for once. I'm not planning on dying today."

"I already have an acting will and testament." Oriko stated, "However, it will be immaterial if we fail. And I believe you are overlooking something, if I may say so."

Misato raised an eyebrow.

"You state you cannot track the Angel due to the fact it is using its AT-field to jam transmissions, correct?" Oriko asked, "In that case, why don't you simply use a large telescope to chart its position?"

There was a brief silence.

"Why didn't I think of that?" Misato stated, "Good idea, Oriko. I will factor that into the plan."

"We have sighted the Angel!" Jack cried suddenly several hours after the briefing.

"Excellent." Misato stated, "Shinji, Asuka, Rei, Oriko. Accelerate your EVAs to the maximum velocity and intercept the target!"

"Right then." Shinji stated and the EVAs pulled into a full blown spirit. Midway to the target, Shinji was momentarily surprised by the sound of a sonic boom echoing from where Unit 04 had been launched.

"Misato..." he began, "I thought the EVA's were unable to go beyond the speed of sound?"

"Don't worry about that, Shinji!" Misato called out, "Just focus on the Angel!"

_Something is up..._ Shinji thought but did as he was told and guided his EVA up over the crest of a hill and to where the Angel was supposed to drop, only to see Unit 04 at the target sight spreading its AT-field towards the plummeting Angel. He quickly pulled his Evangelion up next to hers and spread his own field. Rei and Asuka quickly joined and did likewise.

Rei pulled a progressive knife out and sliced a hole in the Angel's AT-field, and Asuka grabbed her own and plunged it into the Angels core.

The Angel went inert and the field dissipated, leaving it nothing more than a very heavy inanimate object.

As the pilots returned from the battle, Shinji turned to Oriko.

"Oriko... did your Evangelion bypass the sound barrier?" he asked. Oriko nodded.

"How is that possible?" he then asked.

"There were some alterations to the design." Oriko stated, "You wouldn't understand the details."

Shinji gave her a skeptical look, but nodded.

In the meantime, a certain brown haired man's designs were beginning to unravel…

"Why hasn't my daughter been disposed of yet?" Gendo Ikari demanded.

"We haven't been able to find a suitable opportunity." Kozo replied, "Whenever one of our operatives is within striking distance, she is with Rei Ayanami. And assassination within view of that girl would not be wise."

"She would get suspicious." Gendo confirmed, "Very well, cancel the hit. We will have to use more indirect methods to deal with her."


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight.

"Why isn't Oriko here for the simulation process?" Ritsuko asked.

"She was extremely ill." Misato responded, "I heard her throwing up in the bathroom this morning. She might have the 24-hour virus. I told her we could do her test in a few days once she felt better."

"I see." Ritsuko replied, "Very well then, I understand. A pilot's health is crucial to their continual success. Let us begin."

Asuka snorted and Rei simply nodded, Shinji however found Ristuko's comment rather odd. To his knowledge, she had never expressed concerns about any pilot's health, or, for that matter, concern for anyone during his entire time working with her. She was always strictly professional.

And she couldn't bear to look at Oriko. By this point, everyone knew it. Shinji knew it, Misato knew it, Rei knew it, and Asuka knew it though she didn't care. But she dismissed any questions regarding the matter and insisted there was nothing unusual about her behavior.

In truth, the actual reason for Oriko's absence had nothing to do with illness. In fact, she was perfectly healthy. However, she wasn't above feigning illness in order to use certain illegal programs to take advantage of a certain breach in the Magi systems security that she knew was going to happen due to certain abilities she picked up due to a certain bargain she made with a certain white-furred creature that nobody else in NERV could see or knew the existence of.

Though the last part would change within the next few weeks. She knew that much as well. There was a lot of stuff she knew thanks to her abilities and she was putting that knowledge to good use to accomplish her goals.

Goal one: Defeat the Angels

Goal two: Get her brother to a point where he could be considered mentally healthy.

Goal three: Help Rei achieve a relatively normal life.

Goal four: Help Asuka reach a point where she wasn't antagonistic towards everyone for no good reason. Even Oriko admitted this goal was a bit far-fetched, but she had a plan. She always had a plan.

Goal five: Destroy Gendo Ikari in every way, shape, and form possible.

There was one final goal she had, but she was completely uncertain how to achieve it, as it required three vital components, and acquiring at least one of the components would require a sacrifice Oriko absolutely refused to make.

She had one firm, steadfast rule in her mind. No matter what, she would never hurt a friend.

She wouldn't sacrifice anyone she cared about for anything. Not even the world.

As she sat in the room in the Geofront she would have been given had she not moved into Misato's house, she pondered this last goal and how she could achieve it without compromising her rule. Then checked her watch.

_Let's see..._ she thought. _The breach should happen right about..._

The alarm suddenly blared and Oriko grinned. _Right on time. I estimate I have about one hundred and thirty five seconds to establish a link before Ritsuko establishes the firewall. Kensuke, let's see how good you really are._

**Program activated.**

…

…

**...**

**Generating algorithms...**

**...**

…

**...**

**Decrypting encryption...**

…

…

**...**

**Looking at photos of hot babes...**

**Just kidding Oriko.**

**Link established, hope you find what you are looking for.**

**Let me know what you get, alright?**

_Kensuke, you are such a kidder..._ Oriko chuckled. _This won't take long. There's only one thing I'm looking for._

Her fingers flying across the keys of the laptop, she quickly dove into the encrypted databanks inside the Magi supercomputers. Eventually finding the inner search function, she entered it.

**Searching "Oriko Mikuni"...**

…**..**

…**.**

…**.**

**No matches.**

_The hell? _Oriko thought. _Of course you'd have files on me, father... wait..._

**Searching "Mariko Ikari..."**

_Silly me, too often I forget who I really am..._ Oriko chuckled

…**.**

…**.**

…**.**

…**.**

…**.**

…**.**

…**.**

_Why is this taking so long?_ Oriko wondered.

**File erased by order of the Supreme Commander.**

Oriko gawked at the screen.

_Really father, you should know better._ She thought, _if you were to fabricate a history, it would be one thing, but erasing it only raises further question. I'll have to get some answers out of Ritsuko, but not now. It's too early. I need a more opportune time._

She closed the link and shook her head. _Up to you now, Rits..._

"What is it about you and Oriko?" Misato asked as Ritsuko began quickly typing on the laptop the bridge crew was using to reprogram the Angel that had taken over the computer systems.

"This really isn't the time for this, Misato." Ritsuko replied.

"Then when will be the time?" Misato asked, "Everyone knows something is going on between the two of you and people are getting suspicious. Look, the security systems are down, so if you'll tell me what's going on, I'll keep it between us and try to dispel the rumors that are flying around."

"Rumors..." Ritsuko sighed, "Fine. I knew her when she was young, alright? Very young. Back when she was N- I mean, Yui's daughter. I used to babysit her and I was very sad when she got adopted out. That's all."

"Really..." Misato replied, "You sure Gendo didn't have an affair back then?"

Ritsuko snorted, "Don't be an idiot. Gendo Ikari has very few limits as to what he would and would not do, but one thing he would never, ever, ever do would be to cheat on Yui. And don't dare to make such an insinuation where he might hear of it. He would not take it kindly..."

After desperate and heroic attempts by the bridge crew managed to revert the Eleventh Angel into an inert form, Misato met up with her supposedly-ill ward.

"Feeling better, Oriko?" Misato asked as the silver haired girl sipped a bowl of chicken soup.

"Much." Oriko replied, "Sorry about missing the test earlier."

"It's alright." Misato replied, "A question... Do you remember a woman with blonde hair from when you were young?"

"You mean my mom?" Oriko asked.

"Uh, Oriko..." Shinji spoke up, "Mom was a brunette, not blonde."

"I see..." Oriko responded and pursed her lips, "Sorry, memories from my childhood are kind of fuzzy... I'm going to go lie down now."

Getting up and going to her room she stopped for a moment to stare out the window.

"Iruel has been defeated." She stated to nobody in particular, "Shinji, Rei, Asuka... I hope you're ready, because what's coming up is what's colloquially known as "the hard part."


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine.

She dreamed of her again that morning. In the grass fields beyond the shining city next to the sea.

"It troubles you, does it not?" she heard Homura say, and turned to face her, "Not knowing who you are?"

"It does." Oriko admitted, "My entire life I've looked for a place to belong, people who would accept me and not just leave me when I needed help..."

"Have you found that yet?" Homura asked, her firm expression unchanging.

"I don't know." Oriko stated, "I mean, Rei came through for me when I really needed it, and Kensuke is a pretty nice guy, but Asuka is a complete ass and Shinji... I worry something will happen and he'll just break. Part of me wants to tell him to run away from this place and never look back."

"Do you think he would?" Homura asked.

Oriko nodded.

"You need to have more faith in him." Homura stated, "He'll surprise you yet."

Oriko didn't respond.

"Loneliness is the curse of all of those in your world. As well as with those from ours." Homura stated, "But you had it more than most."

Oriko sighed, "I'd really like Kirika back."

"Well, that course has already been set." Homura stated, "But remember, you are one of us. You'll understand soon enough what your purpose is, and we will all be waiting for your return."

"Are you saying I'm not from here?" Oriko asked.

"It is time for you to wake up now." Homura stated.

"Before I do. What is _her_ name? The one fighting for me?" Oriko asked.

Homura gave a smile at that, "You know her well enough. When you met, you called her-"

At that moment, Oriko woke up. _Goddamnit._ She sighed and got up. Today the pilots were scheduled for compatibility testing.

At the cage, the assignments were given out. Shinji would test Unit 02. Asuka Unit 01. Rei Unit 04. And Oriko Unit 00.

The redhead, needless to say, was not pleased at the idea of the Third Child borrowing "her EVA."

She was pacified somewhat by the fact Shinji's sync ratio in Unit 02 was 14%. Barely above the borderline. She was stung, however, by the fact her sync ratio in Unit 01 was only 34%, compared to her usual scores in the high 60s. She dismissed the purple Evangelion as a "Useless outdated piece of junk."

Then it was Oriko's turn. The moment she stepped into the Evangelion, she knew something was up. And as she attempted to sync with it, she heard childish laughter in the back of her mind and the voice of a young girl saying _Just like me... Just like me..._ and then more laughter. The Evangelion flat out refused to respond to her commands and she was immensely glad to exit the entry plug as staying in there was creeping her out.

As it turned out, it happened to be a very fortunate thing that the soul within Unit 00 had refused to allow the Evangelion to operate at that moment, due to designs from one particularly dangerous man.

"What do you mean it didn't work?" Gendo demanded.

"Just that sir." Kozo replied, "I had the alterations to the EVA performed at your command, and the simulations projected the desired malfunction, but the minute she entered the plug, the Unit stopped working."

"Damnit!" Gendo snapped and took a deep breath to control himself, "Must be due to how we made her. We'll have to go to plan B."

After the test of Unit 00, Rei situated herself into Unit 04 and focused on the task at hand. However, as the test was about to begin, she heard a voice speak to her.

"Hehheheheh..." it laughed for a bit. "Hey, Rei. You wanna know what Gendo did to your EVA before he placed Oriko in it?"

"Huh?" Rei spoke.

"Something he needs to be punished for!"

There was a lurch and Unit 04 sprung to life and began hammering against the wall it was being kept it.

One blow. The room shuttered.

Two blow. A large crack appeared in the wall and Gendo Ikari, who was overseeing the tests, fled the room.

The Unit raised its fist to strike another blow, but at that point the emergency shutdown was activated. Rei was extracted from the Entry plug, thankfully uninjured, as she wondered whether she had actually heard the voice or just imagined it.

It was a few days later when a landmark event happened. Upon a routine synchronization test undertaken by the various pilots, both Shinji Ikari and Oriko Mikuni were found to have surpassed Asuka's ratio by three points each. The red-head reacted to this news as predictably as one would expect.

Shinji's triumph, however, was mitigated somewhat by the unexpected arrival of what could be classified as the most unorthodox Angel to date. A black and white sphere floating in mid-air, having apparently materialized out of nowhere.

"Alright everyone." Misato spoke into the microphone as the Evangelions were put into position, "I've sent you all of the known target data. Approach it carefully, and if possible try to lure it outside of the city. I want you all to back up each other."

"Yes ma'am." Asuka replied sarcastically. "But don't you think Oriko ought to take the point position? I mean, if she's the best EVA pilot of us all, shouldn't she take the lead? Unless she doesn't feel up to it."

"Asuka." Oriko stated, "I would contest the claim of my being the best pilot, given the few Angel fights I participated in were team kills, and my brother managed two solo kills, and two with you holding him back."

"Holding him back?!" Asuka cried, "Listen you bitch, I work better in a team than you ever have so why don't you-" 

"Misato." Oriko interrupted, "Requesting permission to take the point position."

"Granted." Misato replied, rubbing her eyes and sighing. _What am I going to do with these kids?_

"Right then..." Oriko stated.

The EVAs quickly got into position and the minute they were ready. Unit 04 stepped from behind a building and fired at the Angel. The sphere vanished to appear over the Evangelion, then an immense shadow appeared beneath the Unit and it began sinking into it.

"Oriko!" Shinji shouted.

"Misato!" Oriko cried, "This thing is absorbing me! Can you eject the entry plug?"

Misato glanced at the other bridge techs. Maya shook her head, "The Unit is not responding to the command!" she cried.

"I believe firing at the sphere caused a trigger response that resulted in this retaliatory attack." Oriko stated, desperately pulling at the control rods to try and free the Evangelion from the Angel. "Given that observation, I would recommend that-"

The transmission cut out as Unit 04 vanished from view.

"Shinji, Asuka, Rei..." Misato stated, "This is an order. Withdraw..."

"So..." Shinji began, his voice shaking, trying to reduce the sick feeling in his stomach to something at least halfway manageable.

"According to Ritsuko." Rei stated, "If Oriko stays in the most minimal life support mode, she will survive for sixteen hours. She is unable to formulate a plan to rescue her. Misato has concluded the logical course of action would be to drop an extended series of N2 mines into the Angel's shadow to terminate it."

"But that'll kill Oriko as well as the Angel!" Shinji screamed.

"Kindly lower your voice, if you would." Rei requested, "And I do not believe the plan will be implemented."

Shinji was left confused at that. "I'm sorry?" he asked.

"I believe that Oriko Mikuni was aware of the effects that would result upon firing on the Angel." Rei stated.

Shinji looked at her in disbelief, "How would she even know that? And are you saying Oriko wanted to get swallowed by that thing?"

Rei looked at Shinji for a long moment, "There is certain information Oriko confided in me that I cannot reveal, however I can state that she is not a normal human. Her actions thus far appear to have specific goals, and at least some of them indicate to me that she is in possession of information that would be unavailable without the assistance of paranormal phenomenon. She specifically requested the point position. Given that she would be unmoved by Asuka's taunts and that she would normally prefer you to be the designated leader as it is an asset to your ego, there must be a reason she wanted it."

"Why?" Shinji asked.

"I believe that being immersed into the Angel's Dirac Sea was part of her design." Rei stated, "Why that is I cannot say. Regardless, she would not do so without a plan to resolve such a scenario. She would not risk your mental health."

"I don't understand."

"To summarize." Rei stated, "Have faith."

As it turns out, Rei was completely correct in her postulate that Oriko being absorbed by the Twelfth Angel was part of her design. What wasn't part of her design was how unpleasant waiting around inside of the Angel turned out to be.

Oriko sighed. "Bored... Bored... Boooring..." she remarked, "And I really should have eaten more before this mission. Though I think anyone would get hungry after... "She checked the clock on her wrist. "Fourteen hours?"

Staring up at the roof of the entry plug, she called out, "Oh, Mr. Angel? If it's not too much trouble, could we hurry up and get this over with?"

There was no response, so she just leaned back and sighed.

Then the LCL began clouding up and the smell of blood entered her nostrils. "Finally..." she mumbled.

The world around her distorted and reformed into a school. Specifically, the school she had been attending when Hisaomi Mikuni had committed suicide.

"**Oriko Mikuni." **The voice stated.

"I am Oriko Mikuni."

"**As am I. This self incorporates another self. The self has always been composed of two selves. The self which is observed and the self that observes itself. To expound, there is the Oriko Mikuni that exists in your mind, the Oriko Mikuni that exists in Shinji Ikari's mind, the Oriko Mikuni that exists in Rei Ayanami's mind, The Oriko Mikuni that exists in Asuka Langley Sooryu's mind, and the Oriko Mikuni in Gendo Ikari's mind. Each are different Oriko Mikuni, but each is also a true Oriko Mikuni. What you fear is the Oriko Mikuni in the minds of others."**

"I am not scared of what others think of me."

"**You're afraid of being hurt."**

"I'm big enough to admit that. But could not the same be said about anyone else?"

"**Gendo Ikari deserted you. Hisaomi Mikuni abandoned you. Yui Ikari is lost. Theresa Mikuni is dead."**

"I had two mothers and two fathers and not one of them was an actual parent."

"**There is another."**

"Excuse me?"

"**The questions you have been asking yourself. Why do you have silver hair? Why do you remember a blonde woman when you were younger? Why does Ritsuko Akagi refuse to look at you? You ask the right questions, and you know the answer, but you are scared to admit it."**

"Of course I am scared to admit it. I'm not even human right now. To add that on top of my status as a magi..."

"**What defines a human?"**

"I... I don't know..."

"**Is Rei Ayanami human?**"

"To me she is."

"**Then would you not also be human? Or do you prefer to deny that label to yourself for fear of what it might entail?" **

"Why would I be scared of being human?"

"**Because it opens the door to being hurt."**

"I wouldn't be less hurt if I wasn't human."

"**You see yourself as different. Seeing yourself as different allows you to build a wall within yourself to keep others out."**

"But I _am_ different."

"**Only in the sense of why you are here."**

"What?"

"**You are here on a mission. You seek to accomplish it, but you do not know why."**

"You're talking about Third Impact."

"**Correct. She who directs it controls what form it takes. But the task will end in failure unless you can break down the barriers in your heart."**

"How would that get me closer to enacting it?"

"**You know the three components. You have a plan to take one. You have another in your possession without realizing it. The third will be given up willingly should you and your sister join forces at the correct time."**

"I'm not sacrificing Rei!"

"**She is not the one who will be sacrificed."**

"Then who?"

"**The loneliest one of all."**

"I don't understand! Why are you Angels doing this anyway? Half the world died fifteen years ago, the human race is doomed to extinction in three generations if the birth rates can't be fixed and you're all invading this city for what gain?"

"**We have no choice."**

"Of course you have a choice!"

"**No, we do not. Free will is not in my design."**

"Is that correct, _Leliel_?"

"**You know my name."**

"Surprised?"

"**I am not. Which is why I am glad to have met you, Oriko Mikuni. Which is why I ask you complete your duty."**

"You want me to kill you?"

"**The humans have a word for one who is bound to follow the commands of a master without choice."**

"We call them slaves."

"**Correct. I am the slave of Adam. It is not an existence I desire. And now it shall end."**

There was a rumbling inside the cockpit at Unit 04 stirred to life.

"**One final thing, Oriko Mikuni."**

"**Good luck."**

**Meanwhile...**

"The pilots are ready." Jack stated.

"Hold on..." Maya's eyes widened in surprised. "The readings are going off the scale!"

"But we haven't done anything yet!" Ritsuko cried.

NERV's bridge techs stared in horrified fascination as the side of Leliel's shadow rippled and a massive white hand punched a hole in it from the inside. A torrent of blood spilled out onto the city streets as Unit 04 tore the Angel apart from inside and let out a deafening roar.

Later on, Gendo and Ritsuko stared at Unit 04 as it underwent cleaning for the blood coating on it.

"Can I ask a question?" Ritsuko asked.

Gendo nodded.

"I was reviewing what our cameras picked up from the battle..." Ritsuko took a deep breath, "Sir, does Unit 04 have claws?"

"It shouldn't." Gendo stated and frowned slightly.

**Meanwhile...**

The minute Rei heard the doorbell at her place she hurried and opened it. "Oriko." she stated.

"Hey..." Oriko remarked, "Mind if I come in?"

Rei nodded and Oriko made her way to the couch and sat down, rubbing her eyeballs wearily.

"I lied during the debriefing." Oriko admitted, "I told them I had blacked out during the time I was inside the Angel. I didn't. I was fully conscious during the entire thing."

"I see." Rei stated.

"The Angel talked to me. It was suicidal and wanted to die..." Oriko stated, "I don't know how to feel about that. I honestly felt kind of bad for it by the end..."

"Is killing an Angel that wants to die any worse than killing one that doesn't?" Rei asked.

"Probably not." Oriko admitted, "But it just doesn't sit right with me. And there's another thing..."

Rei raised an eyebrow.

"I've been thinking about the possibility for a while now, but the last encounter all but confirmed it..." Oriko sighted.

"Rei, I think I'm like you." Oriko stated, "I think... I think I'm part Angel..."


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter 10.

"You summoned me, father?" Oriko asked as she entered the office of Gendo Ikari. The last word was spoken slightly sardonically. Given that Gendo had adopted her out as a child, he certainly wasn't her father emotionally, and if she really was part Angel, which she was pretty sure was the case by this point, he wasn't her father in a biological sense either.

"Yes." Gendo stated. "Given the recent performance of your Unit, we are going to giving it an extended series of examinations to make sure it is properly designed. As such, when Unit 03 arrives in this city, you will be performing a synchronization test to see whether you are compatible with it. If so, it will replace Unit 04 as your designated Evangelion. Understood?"

"Yes, sir." Oriko stated.

"Dismissed." Gendo stated.

Oriko bowed sharply, and left his office. The minute she was outside, she took a deep breath to calm her nerves. Then another. And another.

Of all the events she was privy to by virtue of her magical powers, this was by far the one she was most concerned about. She knew that Gendo would want to get rid of her, and she'd have to dodge every attempt he made.

And this was the one chance he had to get rid of her and make it look like an accident. Bardiel. The thirteen Angel. Which would manifest the minute Unit 03 would activate with Oriko inside of it.

And there wasn't any way she could avoid the scenario. The only way she could get out of the test would be to tip her hat that she knew about the Angel, but that would alert everyone to the fact she knew knowledge that is only normally present in the Dead Sea Scrolls, and that would not only bring down Gendo's wrath, but that of SEELE, and would throw her plans into chaos.

She would have to just bite the bullet and hope she was as good as she thought she was. Thankfully, she had two advantages. One was that she knew what was going to happen. The second was that Gendo Ikari didn't know that she knew what was going to happen.

The morning of the test, she received a not so surprising visitor at her house.

"Kensuke..." Oriko stated as she opened the door.

"Madam Oriko!" Kensuke cried as he bowed before her, "Is it true? That the Americans are bringing another Evangelion here?"

Oriko sighed.

"I beg of you! Please make me an EVA pilot! Please! Please! I'll do anything!" Kensuke begged.

"Kensuke..." Oriko stated.

Kensuke looked up, "Is something wrong?" he asked.

Oriko stared at him for a long moment then picked up a piece of paper off the counter and began writing on it, "I want you to do something for me. Be at these coordinates at this time. You will see firsthand exactly how foolish you are."

Kensuke took the piece of paper, "Oriko, what's going on?" he asked.

"I never told you what magic I have, did I?" she asked.

Kensuke shook his head.

"I see the future." Oriko stated. "Now if you would, could you leave me be for the time being?"

As it turns out, the situation that was about to unfold had provoked a question in Shinji Ikari's mind that had been bothering him for some time.

"Oriko, I was wondering something." He suddenly spoke up as they ate breakfast.

"Is it about the test?" Oriko asked.

Shinji nodded, "They say they want you to test Unit 03 because of possible defects in Unit 04... You told me there were some alterations to the design, so..."

Oriko hesitated, "Shinji..." she finally stated "I told you once that building an Evangelion requires a very hard to find component. Have you ever guessed what that is?"

At that, Shinji flashed back to Oriko's frantic whispering as she was trying to sleep the night before the Ninth Angel. "Oriko..." he began "What happened to Kirika?"

Oriko visibly winced at the question. "You've made the connection then." she stated. "Shinji, inside each Evangelion is a soul. Unit 04 has the soul of my girlfriend Kirika Kure embedded within it."

Shinji blanched at the revelation. "Then who is inside... mine?"

"Unit 01 has the soul of Yui Ikari. Your mother." Oriko stated.

"Dear god..." Shinji whispered. "But why would Kirika's soul cause alteration to the design?"

"That's a bit complicated." Oriko stated, "I'll explain that some other time. And to answer another question I'm sure is on your mind, I do not know of any way to get a soul back out of the EVA."

"How'd she get in it in the first place?" Shinji asked.

"I don't know all the details." Oriko stated, "But there was some sort of accident." she sighed, "If it's alright, can we talk more about this some other time? Today's going to be rough..."

Shinji nodded.

"Remember, Shinji, I love you." Oriko stated.

"Rei... I need to talk to you." Oriko stated as she walked up to the bluenette less than half an hour before she was to head off to the base.

Rei looked up from the book she was reading and nodded.

"I've been keeping something from you." Oriko stated, "I can see the future."

Rei paused momentarily and nodded, "That explains a lot." she stated simply.

"When Unit 03 is activated today, it will be possessed by an Angel and go berserk." Oriko continued, "I can't get out of the sync test, so I need you to be able to disable it without killing me. Can you do that?"

Rei stared at Oriko a long moment. "I... I don't know." she admitted, "But I'll do my best."

Oriko nodded, "That's all I can ask for."

"Oriko..." Rei stated, standing up and placing her hand on Oriko's shoulder. "Be careful. Please."

"Entry plug secure." The voice stated as the test began, "Initiating first connections."

Oriko focused, trying to calm herself down. In the entire time she had been in Tokyo-3, she had never been so scared. Being set out to face Ramiel and then being boiled alive in her Entry Plug was scary, the threat of being forced to leave the city after Jet Alone was scary, and watching Asuka dive far below the recommended safety depth to face Sandalphon was scary, but this was on a whole new level.

_I have never encountered a situation that could be improved by panicking_. She thought to herself over and over. Though it was all she could do to not freak out. She desperately wanted to scream for them to stop the test, thought she wouldn't. _Make or break time. Rei, I hope to god you can stop this thing..._

Then she glanced down next to where she was sitting. _And if she can't... well, you're my backup plan._

"Proceeding to phase two..." the voice stated, and then the Evangelion began to spasm.

"Abort the test!" She heard Ritsuko scream as warning bells went off across the base. "An Angel-"

There was a huge explosion and then the lights in the Unit vanished as Bardiel took the helm.

It didn't take long for word of the incident to reach the ears of the other pilots.

"What do you mean there was an accident in Matsushiro?" Shinji cried "What's going on with Oriko? TELL ME!" he screamed, nearly on the verge of hysterics.

"Contact hasn't been restored yet." Rei stated.

"What about Misato?" he shouted, "How can we fight an Angel without her?"

"Commander Ikari will be leading this battle." Rei stated. Shinji noticed that the bluenette had a note of fear in her voice.

"My father...?" Shinji asked.

"Yes." Rei replied. "Shinji... please calm yourself. I'm sure Oriko will be fine." She nodded and the two left to get suited up.

Moments later, a massive form was seen coming over the horizon.

"Oh... my... god..." Shinji stammered out as the hulking, deformed form of Unit 03 approached.

"Oriko is in there? Isn't she?!" Shinji screamed.

"Shinji, shut up and-" Asuka began, only for her feed to be interrupted by a static and the distorted sound of screams.

"Oh god..." Shinji stammered "Rei! What do we do?!"

"We must fight." Rei stated. Unit 00 left its position and approached the Angel.

And then she hesitated. "Oriko..." she whispered.

And at that moment, Unit 03 launched itself off its feet and landed onto Unit 00. A grey liquid began pouring from its joints onto Unit 00. Moments later, Rei let out a scream as the left arm of her EVA was blasted off.

_Oriko... I'm sorry..._ Rei thought through the immense pain flooding through her body. _Gendo... I swear to god I'm going to make you pay for this._

"The Angel is approaching you, Unit 01." Gendo spoke through the microphone. "Contact in twenty second. You must destroy it."

Shinji whimpered slightly, "But... but Oriko's inside it."

Unit 03 leapt up and slammed into Unit 01, sending it skidding across the ground, then grabbed Unit 01's neck with unnaturally long arms and began to strangle it.

"Shinji, why aren't you fighting?" Gendo asked.

"I can't..."

"Shinji, destroy the Angel."

"No." Shinji stated, his voice suddenly calm and level.

"Shinji! I am commanding you to destroy the Angel!"

"I don't care!" Shinji shouted, "I'D SOONER DIE THAN HURT MY SISTER SO STUFF YOUR ORDERS YOU WORTHLESS OLD MAN!"

Gendo shook his head, "Shut down all synchronization circuits to the pilot of Unit 01. Switch all controls to the dummy plug system."

Shinji's eyes went wide with horror as the displays on his Unit went dark, then reactivated as it began roaring to life without his command.

"No..." he whispered as his Evangelion roared to life, "NO! NO! NO! NO! NOOOOO!" he screamed as the Unit animated and began to brutally tear into Unit-03.

"MAKE IT STOP!" Shinji screamed, "PLEASE! I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU DO TO ME BUT PLEASE JUST MAKE IT STOP!" he tugged helplessly at the control rods. "FATHEEEER!"

_Shinji. _He suddenly heard and looked around, desperately trying to find the source of Oriko's voice, _For god sakes calm down. I'm fine._

"Oriko?" he asked.

_Don't talk. Think. I'm in your head. Telepathy. I'll explain later._

He stared at the display monitor as Unit 01 tore off one of the arms of 03. _How can you say that? My Unit... _he thought helplessly.

_Look. I have an advantage. Or several advantages. I've gotten a hold on your EVA's attack patterns so I'll be able to ride this out._

Unit 01 then tore several gaping holes in Unit-03's armor.

_Shinji..._ Oriko's voice came again. _I promise you, I'm fine. I know this is hard for you but..._

Unit 01 tore out the Entry Plug of Unit-03.

_Trust me._

And crushed it in its hand before tossing it aside.

"ORIIIKOOOO!" Shinji screamed and began breaking down in tears. _Oh god. I've killed her. My sister is dead and it's all my fault... I... I..._

_Shinji._ Oriko thought back. _Look to your left._

As the dummy plug system deactivated, he turned to see Oriko push aside the broken hatch of the entry plug and stumble out, barely the worse for wear.

Inside NERV headquarters, Gendo looked at the same scene with a mixture of astonishment and horror.

_This situation is going out of my control..._ he thought.

Oriko meanwhile walked over to Kensuke, who had been hiding in a now partially demolished building and now was looking at the silver-haired girl, slightly fearful.

"Burn this sight into your brain." Oriko stated harshly. "_This is what it means to be an EVA pilot_."


	12. Chapter 11

Chapter 11:

Oriko was very grateful that Shinji had chosen to quickly exit his EVA for a rendezvous with her rather than doing something reckless spiteful, such as attempting to trash NERV HQ with his Evangelion. As she walked down the street towards NERV HQ, she quickly became aware that Shinji was about to grab her from behind in a big hug.

While she was normally adverse to both close contact and people attempting to surprise her, she figured her brother deserved a break and so allowed the ensuing glomp to take place.

"H-hey." She got out and turned around to face him, "You're stronger than you look, you know that?"

"Oriko, I…" Shinji suddenly seemed to be at a loss for words, then buried his face in her body, "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to do it! I just…. I just…"

"Its fine, Shinji." Oriko replied, "And please get your head out of my bosom, if you would."

"Gah!" Shinji cried and jerked straight up, backing away. "S-sorry."

There was a brief silence.

"So…" Shinji stated, "Um…"

"Yes?" Oriko asked.

"Why are you going back to headquarters?" He finally asked.

_Great. The one question I'm not prepared to answer. Seriously, couldn't you have asked about the telepathy? Or how I withstood the attack? Or what I saw when I got sucked into Leliel… _ Oriko sighed.

"I mean…" Shinji continued, "The Angel is dead and we don't need to do anything else today. Unless you left your phone there or something…."

Oriko stared at Shinji for a long moment, inwardly debating whether to come up with an excuse along those lines. Ultimately, she rejected the notion. After what had just happened, Shinji deserved to know the truth.

"The next Angel is about to attack." She stated. "And considering what it's going to be like, I need some time to prepare."

"WHAT?!" Shinji practically screamed, a look of pure horror on his face, "But Oriko…Where…Why… How do you know this?"

"I know because I'm precognitive." Oriko replied, "I can see the future. It is how I've managed to survive so far, especially that last bit…"

"How can you get back into one of those things?" Shinji asked, "You nearly died! I could feel my hands just tearing and tearing and…"

"I have no choice." Oriko replied, shaking her head. "Asuka's skills aren't up to defeating this next one by any stretch of the imagination, and Unit 00 isn't fully repaired, so it's up to me. Ritsuko and Gendo should have finished the examination of Unit 04 so it's fully operational and ready to go."

Shinji stared at his sister, trying to figure out what to say. "Are you going to be alright?"

"I have to be." Oriko stated, "If I fail, all of humanity will perish."

"What should I do?" Shinji asked.

"You could run away." Oriko replied.

Shinji was struck speechless at Oriko's suggestion. "Run away?" he repeated.

"I know you're thinking about it." Oriko replied, "And you've been through and suffered more than anyone has any right to expect of you. You could just leave the last few Angels to us and find a nice life somewhere we could rejoin you when this is all over. Nobody would blame you." Oriko's face darkened and she added, "If they did, I would never forgive them."

Shinji looked at his sister, who seemed to be staring off into the distance.

"Goodbye, brother." Oriko stated and then walked off into the distance.

Shinji watched her until she vanished, then stood there in silence at he pondered what she had just said. In his entire time piloting EVA, one thing nobody had ever suggested was the thing that was on his mind virtually every time he was forced into a battle.

_Why doesn't she run away then?_ He thought, _She was boiled alive in her Entry plug and inside Unit 03 when dad turned the dummy plug on, not to mention being swallowed by that giant shadow…_

Something then occurred to him. The way one of his classmates had described her when she had first transferred into his class.

"She likes Shinji and Rei, and JUST Shinji and Rei."

_Because she doesn't have anything left anywhere else._

His brow furrowed and gears whirred in his mind as ultimately he came to a decision.

When Oriko arrived to the base, she immediately headed to the hanger

"So, you get the inspection of my Unit done?" Oriko asked as she walked into the hanger.

"Yes, actually." Ritsuko stated, "As far as we can tell there are no abnormalities consistent with supersonic speed or the claws that seemed to be present on the replays of the battle against the Twelfth Angel. However, umm…" she suddenly seemed to lose her voice and shake her head. "I'll see you later."

As Ritsuko quickly left Oriko's presence, the silver-haired girl shook her head in annoyance. Staring up at her Unit, she attempted to come up with a prayer for the battle ahead, but came up blank and sighed.

_Remember, Oriko…_ She suddenly heard Homura's voice in her head. _She is fighting for you. Good luck._

"Coming to me when I'm awake now?" Oriko mumbled under her breath, "I wish you'd just tell me-"

At that moment, the alarms began to blare, and moments later the entire base shook as the first eighteen layers of shielding were blasted into shreds.

"What the hell is going on?" Oriko heard a voice shout and saw Asuka running out of a nearby corridor, with Rei following shortly behind.

"I think that much is obvious." Oriko replied, "Listen, this Angel is going to be a nasty one, I need you two to-"

"Shut up!" Asuka shouted, "You don't have the right to tell me to do anything you stupid bitch!"

"Where is Shinji?" Rei asked.

"I…" Oriko stated and shook her head, "I don't think he'll be piloting anymore."

Rei lowered her head, "This is my fault." She stated. "If I had taken out Unit 03…"

"It wouldn't have made things any better." Oriko replied, "Look-"

Asuka quickly bolted up the ladder towards her EVA.

"Damnit Asuka! Listen to me!" Oriko shouted, and shook her head, "She's going off all half-cocked again. Rei…"

Rei looked back up at Oriko, and was about to speak when the base shook again. While most people would have difficulty understanding the expression on Rei Ayanami's face, Oriko had been around her long enough to understand.

She was scared. So was Oriko. The only person on base who wasn't scared at this point was Asuka, who lacked the foresight to be scared.

Wordlessly, the two quickly made their ways to their EVAs.

And arrived on the surface of the Geofront. Unit 02 had grabbed two pallet rifles and was emptying them into the form of Zeruel, the Angel of Strength.

"I'm neutralizing it's AT field, aren't I?" Asuka screamed. "Die damn you!"

Suddenly, the Angel's thin, stunted arms became much, much longer and stuck at Unit 02. The arms of the Evangelion were removed from the body and flew across the field.

Fifty eight seconds. That was the amount of time it had taken to eliminate Asuka Langley Soryu "The Great" from the battle field. Fifty eight seconds.

Despite that, Asuka charged her now defenseless EVA at the Angel, only for the head to be removed as well.

"Rei…" Oriko stated, "Do me a favor and retreat. Unit 00's rifle was eliminated during the last battle-"

"The Commander supplied me with an alternative weapon." Rei responded. Oriko turned her head to see Unit 00 clutching a N2 mine in its hands.

"Rei!" Oriko cried

"Don't worry." Rei replied, "If I die, I can be replaced."

"Don't say that!" Oriko screamed, "DON'T YOU EVER SAY THAT REI-"

Unit 00 bolted towards the Angel at full speed. Oriko instinctually had the desire to run after her, but suppressed it. Getting caught in the blast would likely disable her Evangelion as well. And as such, she could do little but watch helplessly as her best friend was enveloped in a white light.

As Unit 00 collapsed to the ground, Oriko stared at the Angel, an eerie calm settling over her.

"Are you there, Kirika?" she whispered, "Come, let us show these monsters what we are made of. One. Final. Time."

Setting her Evangelion into a full speed charge, she saw the Angel extent its arms towards her, only for her to leap over it and land on the other side. Pulling Unit 04's progressive knife out of its shoulder, Oriko drove it hard into the Angels body, leaving a massive gash in its side.

Inside the bridge, the techs were watching the carnage with horror.

"How is she doing?" Misato asked, desperately clinging to hope the world might see another day.

"Captain Katsuragi…" Maya stated, looking up from the readings. "Oriko's sync ratio at this time is perfect. One hundred percent."

Misato turned to look at the young woman, "How is that possible? Her last test showed..."

She turned back to the viewing screen, where the Angel had extended one of its arms at Unit 04, only for the Evangelion to catch it in its teeth and tear it off. Her mind traced back the previous Angel fights. How Oriko had been used as a distraction for the first battle she was to participate in, how she had been benched following Jet Alone and remained that way until the Eleventh Angel, then been swallowed by the Twelfth and caught in the Thirteenth.

Until now, her sync ratio had always been within five to seven points of her brothers. Misato had assumed that was due to them being siblings. Progressing at piloting at similar rates due to being closely related. But now, she realized that wasn't the case at all.

Oriko had told her she was deliberately showing Asuka up at every turn as a way to "help" her. "An unorthodox form of psychotherapy" Oriko had called it. Misato realized now that wasn't the only thing she was doing. She was deliberately lowering her sync score so that her brother could appear as the hero. And now that Shinji wasn't here, against the worst Angel yet, she was showing how good she really was.

Of course, whether that would mean the planet would live to see another day was another story.

In her EVA, Oriko was working up a sweat. Even with the enhanced reflexes and unnatural agility she was gifted with as a magical girl, she was quickly working herself to her limit. Zeruel was extraordinarily agile itself, and she couldn't afford to get hit even once, because then there would be nothing left to stop it.

It was like a fight against one of the legendary wraith kings, but for the fate of an entire planet rather than just a city.

Suddenly, the Angel lashed out its remaining arm. But not against Unit 04. Rather, this time it targeted the power cord that connected Unit 04 to its supply of electricity.

And Oriko was suddenly distracted by the alert that appeared on her cockpit. And the distraction, while momentary, was costly, as Zeruel took advantage of the gap in her defenses and slammed its arm into its torso. And Oriko experienced firsthand the cost of enacting a perfect sync ratio, letting out a howl of agony as Unit 04 fell to the ground

Tears flowed from Oriko's eyes. "Gotta get up…" she mumbled, "Gotta save… Need… Kirika…"

"HEY!" a voice suddenly came over the radio waves. "GET AWAY FROM MY SISTER!"

As Oriko stared out of the cockpit, she became aware of a familiar purple Evangelion running onto the battlefield towards the Angel.

_He didn't run away!_ Oriko thought as her vision began to blur. _Shinji didn't run away! If it's alright… I'll leave the rest in your hands. I need to sleep now… Sleep…Now…_

The last thing she saw before the darkness overtook her was the rampaging Unit 01 tearing into Zeruel and the last thing she heard was Shinji Ikari letting out bloodcurdling screams of rage.

It was one of the most beautiful sounds Oriko had ever heard.

It reminded her of her girlfriend.


	13. Chapter 12

Chapter 12.

Oriko found herself staring up at a brilliant night sky. Located directly above her, the Pleiades shone with unnatural brightness and a beautiful pink nebula could be seen just over on the horizon near the city she had come to in her dreams…

"Told you he'd surprise you." Oriko heard Homura say as she stood up.

"Right…" Oriko replied and looked around. "I'm not dead, am I? I mean, if this is Heaven it seems pretty nice but I'm not finished with my work yet…"

"Of course not." Homura replied, "You still need to complete your mission."

"My mission?" Oriko asked "You mean activating Instrumentality? Are you saying that was your idea? Why?"

Homura stared at Oriko for a long moment. "A badly broken world, devoid of hope. They need our help. More specifically, they need your help. Does that sound familiar?"

Oriko paused. "A little…."

"It was how I described the task before you agreed to it." Homura stated, "Magical girls bring hope to the world, and our Goddess was deeply concerned about the one you are now on."

"I was here before? What Goddess? Why did I agree do this?" Oriko scratched her head. "I'm confused."

Homura thought for a moment, deciding how to explain it. "You had a rough life, even as magi go." She stated, "Abandoned by your father, rejected by your peers, not getting a chance to know love or real friendship…" she sighed. "Let me start over…"

"The world you were on isn't the one you originally came from. And the nature of a magical girl was not what it originally was." Homura begin. "Originally, and I mean this in a paratemporal sense, as history was retroactively altered from the beginning of time, there weren't any wraiths. Instead, there were what we called witches. Like wraiths, they were creatures of hate and malice that caused many suicides and murders. Unlike wraiths, they didn't just manifest, they had a cause. They came from magical girls."

Oriko opened her mouth, but Homura held up her hand.

"Let me finish." Homura stated, "Your history was similar to how it is now. Brought up rich by a neglectful father who was discovered to be a criminal and rejected by all your peers, ultimately leading you to take a contract and develop precognitive powers which you chose to use to defend your world with the help of Kirika Kure. However, on that world there weren't Angels or Evangelions, rather, you chose to defend it from the most dangerous witch to have ever been created from a magi's soul gem. Kriemhild Gretchen, born from Madoka Kaname."

"I was Madoka's protector at the time, having traveled innumerous timelines in an attempt to save her from her fate. We were, you could say, two sides to a coin. You sought to destroy her in attempt to save the world from what she might become, I sought to protect her and was willing to sacrifice anything to that extent."

"Your path led you to cause the deaths of many, but ultimately you succeeded at the cost of your life and that of Kirika Kure's. Madoka Kaname died, and I was forced restart from the beginning. Over and over I tried. Ninety three times, to be precise, though I only fought you once. And in the end, the final timeline, Madoka took the sum total of all the power that had been bound to her as a result of my time loops and made one final wish. To eliminate every witch before its creation."

"In doing so, she transcended her earthly existence and became the Goddess of Hope, building a realm for every magi who would otherwise be lost to despair." Homura took a breath, "Even you."

Oriko stared at Homura, not sure how to react.

"Madoka didn't care that you had killed her." Homura stated, "Or of any of the other deaths you may have caused. All she saw in you was a lonely girl with a lot of hurt that she wanted to make feel better. She forgave you. The rest of us… Well, we took a bit longer." Homura shrugged, "But eventually we came around."

"But while we forgave you, you never forgave yourself." Homura stated, turning away slightly, "Mami Tomoe invited you to her tea parties, Sayaka Miki to her movie nights, Kaoru Maki to her soccer matches, but you didn't feel like you deserved it. Madoka may have taken you into heaven, but all you wanted was for it to end. More than once you asked for us to just destroy your soul entirely."

"We grew worried." Homura continued, turning back, "And once you shut Kirika out of your life, we held a meeting to decide what to do. Sayaka was the one who suggested that if you felt like a villain, perhaps what you needed was a chance at redemption."

"Our Goddess had been aware of the world you were on for a long time, but wasn't sure what to do about it." Homura stated, "But if there was any magi out of the untold billions we knew that could give it back the future it had lost, it would be you. We told you up front that it wouldn't be easy. You would suffer the hurt and loss you experienced all over again, not to mention the difficulties involved with fighting Angels, piloting EVA, trying to outmaneuver Gendo…."

"But despite that, you agreed to it without hesitation."

Once Homura had finished her explanation, Oriko spoke up, "You said if any magi could save this world, I could. Why is that?"

"Very few magi think globally." Homura stated, "I focused on Madoka, Sayaka focused on the boy she was in love with, Kyouko focused on her family, and then on herself when everything fell apart. But you think of the world as a whole. The only other magi I know that did that was Madoka herself. And more than that, you're mentally stable and very, very intelligent. Two factors that would be key to your success in the mission."

Oriko considered that, "Are any of these girls on this planet with me?"

"No." Homura replied, "We only had the power to send two souls into the Room of Gauf. Yours and Kirika Kure's."

Oriko nodded.

"There's something you should know about your mission." Homura added, "To complete it, you'll need to-"

At that moment, Oriko jerked awake. Looking around, she realized she was in a hospital bed, and on the other side of the room was Rei Ayanami. Her head was covered in a bandage and she looked like she had dragged herself out of a hospital bed to be by Oriko's bedside when she woke up.

"Rei!" She cried in relief, "Thank god! I thought you were dead!"

Rei looked up at Oriko, dark circles under her eyes and smiled. "Thank god indeed…" she replied.

Oriko blinked, "How long have you been awake?" she asked.

"Approximately seventy five hours." Rei replied, "I felt keeping watch over you was the best way to make sure the Commander did not attempt to assassinate you while you were undergoing medical care. And if I had lost both of my friends…" her expression darkened.

"Both of… Did something happen to Shinji?!" Oriko cried.

Rei nodded. "After the Fourteenth Angel incapacitated Unit 04, Shinji engaged it, displaying unusual ferocity and a fifteen point increase in his synchronization ratio. However, before he was able to defeat the Angel, the power supply to his EVA ran out. At that point, the Evangelion animated of its own accord. Shinji's sync ratio was measured at over four hundred percent, which caused the collapse of his ego borderline and his absorption into Unit 01."

Oriko considered that for a long moment, "They... they can get him out, can't they?" she asked.

"Ritsuko is planning a rescue attempt." Rei stated and hung her head. "But I don't know."

There was a silence between the two, then Rei spoke again.

"Oriko, you mentioned you had an additional bedroom in your house in case I wished to move in." She stated. "Would it be permissible if I took advantage of the offer you made in that regard at this point?"

"Of course." Oriko replied, then pulled herself out of bed and removed the interventions drip from her arm. Walking over to Rei, she gave the bluenette a hug. "Thanks for keeping watch over me, by the way."

When they got home, they found that it had been ransacked by a certain redhead who was breaking one of the tables into shreds.

"What is SHE doing here?" Asuka shouted as they walked in the door.

"She lives here now." Oriko stated and looked around at the mess Asuka had made. "You do realize some of this stuff was Misato's, don't you?"

"What?! Not only do I have to live with you, but I have to live with Wondergirl?!" Asuka shouted.

"You know, given we just got out of the hospital, I would have hoped you'd give us at least an "I'm glad you're not dead." Oriko snapped back. "Maybe next time _you_ should blow yourself up with an N2 mine."

Asuka let out a snarl, clenched her fist and swung it at Oriko, who caught it and twisted it at an awkward angel. Asuka let out a howl of pain as Oriko then grabbed her head and slammed it into the wall.

"Really, Asuka." Oriko stated. "Have you ever been in a fist-fight in your entire life? Sloppy, uncontrolled, you telegraphed exactly what you were about to do…" she slammed Asuka into the wall again for good measure. "You should know better than to raise a hand against your betters. Now go off to your room before I break one of your bones as a demonstration."

Asuka gave Oriko a look of absolute hate the minute the silver-haired girl let her go, then stormed off to her room. Oriko could there the sound of more possessions being broken from in there, then she turned to Rei.

"My apologies." Oriko stated, "Why don't you go get some sleep now. You've been awake far longer than is healthy for a girl your age."

Rei smiled slightly, "Probably. Worth the effort though." She replied and then walked off to her room to go to bed.

Oriko meanwhile, turned to the mess she now had to clean up.

A couple days later, Oriko paid a visit to Unit 01s cage, carrying a small furry figure nobody else in the room could see.

_It's certainly been a while, Oriko Mikuni. _Kyuubey thought to her.

_Yes, well, desperate times call for desperate measures. I don't know anyone else who could help me talk to him at this point._ Oriko thought back. _Does the name Homura Akemi mean anything to you?_

_It does not. Should it?_

_Not really. I was just curious. _Oriko sighed and sat down next to the unit. _Anyway, patch me in. Hello, Shinji, can you hear me?_

There was a burst of telepathic noise, and Oriko begin hearing Shinji "screaming" mentally, before he took some deep breaths.

_Oriko? Oriko? What's going on, are you there? Hello? _He asked

_I'm here, Shinji. My associate is helping me speak to you telepathically, like I did before._

_What's going on? I'm still in the entry plug, aren't I? How are you speaking to my mind? _Shinji's thoughts were clearly confused.

_Shinji, I should have told you this a long time ago. I'm what's known as a magical girl. Since the beginning of time, there have always been those who are destined to fight the curses of the world in exchange for a single, solitary, wish._

_I don't understand! Oriko, please help me! Are you there? What's going on! Help! Help!_

_Shinji, we're going to get you out of there. Please calm down. Remember what I told you about panicking not helping anything._

_SOMEBODY HELP ME! HELP!_

Oriko sighed and shook her head. This wasn't going anywhere.

"Swear to god, Ritsuko…" she mumbled as she got up and left the room. "You better save him, or else there will be hell to pay."

Later that night, as Asuka sat in her room burying her head in her pillow, she heard a voice coming from beside her.

"Asuka Langley Sorhyu." The creature stated. Asuka looked up to see a white cat-like creature with unblinking pink eyes staring at her.

"Gah, what in the name of God are you?" she asked.

"I'm Kyuubey!" The creature replied. "Asuka, I want you to make a contract with me and become a magical girl!"

"What." Asuka stated, "Is this some trick of yours, Ice Queen?" she called out, "You're laughing at me right now, aren't you?!"

"Do you have a wish?" Kyuubey asked.

"Er…what?" Asuka suddenly snapped to attention and stared at Kyuubey.

"I can grant you a wish. Any wish you want. In exchange, you will become a magical girl and fight creatures known as wraths that lurk in darkness and cause many murders and suicides."

"Any wish I want?" Asuka repeated, a grin spreading across her face. "Hell yeah. Make me the best EVA pilot that ever was or will be!"

She let out a burst of maniacal laughter as the soul was torn out of her body and formed into a red gemstone. "Can't wait to see what that bitch will think of this! I'll show her who the better pilot is!"

The next morning, Asuka triumphantly paraded downstairs and walked right up to Oriko, holding her soul gem close to the silver-haired girls face so she could get a good look at her. "Hey, Ice queen, guess what I did last night!"

"You contracted with Kyuubey for a magical increase to your piloting skills." Oriko replied. "Really, Asuka, anything in the world you could want and _that_ was your wish?"

"Well, you're always crowing about being the best pilot, so I figured I'd show you who your better is!"

"Asuka," Oriko stated, "I never gave a damn about being the best pilot! That was you! That was always you! I really don't give a damn who kills the Angels as long as they get killed! Bear in mind, out of the fourteen Angels that have attacked so far, I was only in combat against four of them, five if you count being trapped inside the entry plug of Unit 03! If you wanted to be better than me then you could have wished to be a great seamstress or dancer or any of the other hobbies I have that would have more substance than this!""

Asuka paused, "Hmmph. You're just jealous because I made a better wish than you."

"You don't even know what my wish was." Oriko replied.

"Doesn't matter. Mine was still better." Asuka replied. "Anyway, I'm heading to school. Gonna see how Hikari reacts to me turning into a shoujo manga protagonist."

As Asuka left, Oriko heard Rei walking down the stairs.

"What was all the shouting about?" Rei asked.

"Asuka contracted with Kyuubey." Oriko replied. "I'll bet you ten thousand yen her magi outfit looks like her plugsuit."

Despite the failure of Oriko's initial attempt to contact Shinji within the EVA, she made several more attempts. Unfortunately, each ended in failure. Finally, on the thirtieth-first day, right before Ritsuko's salvage operation, Oriko tried one more time.

This time, however, Shinji seemed somewhat coherent.

_Oriko? What's going on? _He asked

_Ritsuko's about to start the rescue operation. _Oriko replied, _If you want to, you'll have the opportunity to come back. Please do so. I really miss you._

_You said you were a magical girl?_ Shinji asked

_Yes. I was given a wish, in exchange for a lifetime of battle against monsters. I have used the precognition I possess as my magical power to attempt to save those I hold dear. This last time, it wasn't sufficient._

_And Kirika?_

_My girlfriend, also a magi. _Oriko figured he could guess that already, but answered the question regardless.

_What happened to her?_

There was a paused as Oriko gathered her thoughts. _While most of the wraiths, or demons as some call them, are relatively easily dispatched, every so often there manifests a king. Much more powerful and extraordinarily dangerous, the arrival of one tends to devastate the city it is created in. Kirika and I faced off against one. While we beat it, Kirika had used up so much power, that she would have vanished, as any magi whose soul gem turns black does. She begged with me to prevent that from happening, so I removed her gem from her body. And later, she was used to create my Evangelion._

_Are you going to vanish too?_

_Someday, not yet. We have to vanquish the last three Angels and then the fallout that results afterward._

_There are three more of these things?_

_Yes. But they aren't like the ones we've faced before. The next one is Arael, then Armisael, then Tabris. Arael strikes at the mind, Armisael at the soul, and Tabris at the heart. It is the last you need to know about the most._

_Why? I don't understand._

_Tabris isn't like the others. He has a human form and free will. That is his aspect. The Angel of Free Will. He will come to you as a friend and confident, only to betray you. And for humanity to survive, you must kill him. You will need to kill the boy who loves you._

There was a long pause, then Shinji responded._ I don't know if I want to go back to that._

_Tell me Shinji. I told you to run away, but you didn't. Why?_

_Because…because…. Because you put a lot on yourself. And I wanted to help take some of it off. And given how many people have hurt you I didn't want to be like them._

Oriko glanced over at the techs _Ritsuko's starting the operation. I think we both know what you're going to choose. When you get home, I think I'll make us some strawberry risotto. My last cookbook suggested it as a celebratory dish._

There was a loud splashing sound as the entry plug of Unit 01 opened and a torrent of LCL spilled out followed by Shinji's plugsuit. Misato let out a pitiful cry and rushed over, then broke down crying.

"Misato," Oriko stated, "Look to your left."

There was a second splash as Shinji Ikari's naked form fell down into the puddle of LCL.

"Shinji!" Misato cried out and ran over to embrace the boy.

"Yes, strawberry risotto all around." Oriko stated to nobody in particular. "Why do I have the feeling I'm not the only one who has said that…"


	14. Chapter 13

Chapter 13.

"Well, Asuka's sync ratio has not only recovered since the last battle, but…" Misato sighed and shook her head as they watched her get tested in her Unit.

"I know." Shinji stated.

"Shinji…. I'm sorry." Misato asked.

"For what? My sync ratio being lower?" Shinji chuckled, "Don't worry. I'm sure I'll find something else to do with my life once all this is over. Maybe I'll go back to playing the cello."

Misato chuckled too. "I'm glad you're taking it so well. I honestly was worried about how you'd take the news."

"Well, did you really expect me to be piloting EVA for my entire life?" Shinji asked, "Frankly, I'll be glad once they're all dead and I can live a life that's at least halfway normal."

"Likewise." Oriko stated, walking into the room. "Maybe I could make you some outfits and have us do fashion shoots together. I'm thinking sweet Lolita, with a blonde wig and a stuffed animal, with plenty of frills on the dress."

"You want me too… Oh Oriko…" Shinji blushed deeply "You're kidding right? Please tell me you're kidding."

"I think you would look cute." Rei stated.

"I can't wear that stuff!" Shinji cried.

"Why not?" Rei asked.

"Because I'm a boy!"

"I don't understand why that would matter." Rei stated.

"Hey, Rei, can you draw a picture of Shinji as a sweet Lolita?" Oriko asked.

Shinji's face flushed crimson but he starting chuckling despite himself.

"Hey, how'd you like that, you all?" Asuka cried as she walked into the room, "Looks like Ms. Ice queen isn't the only one who can get a perfect sync ratio!"

"For her, I'm thinking Gothic." Oriko stated, completely ignoring Asuka's remarks. "Rei, what style do you think you'd like?"

"Wa, most likely." Rei stated. "You, Oriko?"

"Sweet, like Shinji." Oriko stated. "I'd need a wig. Silver hair isn't really appropriate for any Lolita style."

"What are you all babbling about?" Asuka shouted, "I just got a perfect sync ratio!"

"Perhaps we could also arrange some cosplay shoots." Oriko stated, pointedly ignoring Asuka. "Perhaps the sailor senshi? Shinji would make a great Saturn."

"I assume I would be Mercury." Rei stated, "Who would you be?"

"Jupiter." Oriko stated and pointed to her chest. "I have the "talent" if you know what I mean."

"Will you shut up and listen to me!" Asuka shouted.

"If we're talking about cosplay, how about Touhou?" Shinji asked, "Kensuke introduced me to the series and they're pretty fun once you get to practicing them."

"You do realize every Touhou character I've seen is female?" Misato asked

"Oh, um…" Shinji blushed slightly, "Aren't there any men?"

"One, out of the hundred and forty something characters." Oriko stated. "But I think you'd look good as most of the girls. Which one would you like cosplay?"

"Uh, well, I like Flandere." Shinji suggested.

Oriko nearly choked, "Flandere? That's one of the hardest designs in the entire series! The wings in particular… But tell you what. For you, I'll do it. I'll probably go with Marisa, myself. She always had dreams of being a magical girl and all. Rei?"

"Cirno." Rei stated.

"Quit ignoring me you assholes!" Asuka shouted. Glaring at Oriko, she snarled, "Bitch..." she mumbled and stormed off.

The next Angel attack was set to occur two days later. That morning, Oriko realized that the fact Asuka had contracted deeply complicated things. While her magically boosted sync ratio would have come in handy against any of the previous Angels, this was Arael.

And for Asuka to face down Arael with her soul encapsulated like it was…. She's vanish. Without question. And as tiring as she could be, Oriko would be needing her before all this ended. Ideally, Rei would be the best choice to be hit by the initial attack, but she was the only one who would be allowed to retrieve the Lance of Longinus to defeat it. Which meant that it ultimately had to be either Shinji or Oriko to set out to face it and Oriko couldn't allow Shinji to do so.

Replaying every awful moment from his life in quick succession would break him.

Which is why she walked into Asuka's room shortly before the attack would take place for a little chit-chat.

"What are you doing here?" Asuka snapped as she entered.

"I need you to let me take the lead on the next Angel." Oriko stated, fully knowing what Asuka's response would be.

"Seriously? You show me up at every turn and now want to steal my glory?" Asuka snorted, "You're out of your head you crazy bitch."

"Listen, Asuka Langley Sorhyu," Oriko replied, her tone deathly serious, "This isn't a game, and this isn't about glory, and this next Angel is not like the others. If you face it, you won't be on this plane of existence anymore."

"Pff." Asuka replied. "Gonna tell you this, Ice Queen. If you want to take the lead, you'll have to do so over my dead body. GOT THAT? OVER MY DEAD BODY!"

At that, Oriko grabbed Asuka and held a damp rag over her mouth. "Death won't be necessary. You being unconscious will suffice." Asuka's struggling quickly ended as the chloroform took effect.

Oriko sighed. "If you had any sense, you'd thank me for this. Though you won't. I don't need to see the future to tell that." She remarked, as the alarms started to blare.

"Oriko, given your performance in the last battle, I'm going to give you the lead." Misato stated, "Rei, back her up in Unit 00. Do you know where Asuka is?"

"We got in a fight." Oriko stated, "Things got a bit out of a hand. She'd probably lying unconscious in her bed. My apologies."

"Right then…" Misato mumbled. "We've brought the positron rifle we used in the Fifth Angel attack out of storage. It's the only weapon we have that can reach it in its current position."

Oriko took a deep breath and aimed it up at the Angel, waiting for the arrows to line up. She silently prayed she'd get a lucky break and Misato's brilliant plan would work a second time.

_Madoka, if you're there, I could really use some help right about-_

At that moment, a beam of light lanced from the Angel and struck Unit 04. Oriko let out a scream as she felt the assault like a series of sledgehammer blows against an invisible wall in her mind. She desperately tried to focus past the pain…

She found herself in a school, Kirika beside her. The planet's most dangerous witch was about to emerge. She had to stop it. She had to kill Madoka Kaname. There was no other way.

"Everyone, do you have people that you love?" she spoke into the school's PA system "Friends, families, lovers, people you wish to protect, even though they might abandon you, and have lamented your own powerlessness while being unable to protect them? The world is in danger. An entity made of absolute malice and despair is descending upon us. However, I will fight."

She motioned to Kirika, and the interior of the school dissolved into an immense checkboard labyrinth. Hundreds of oversized maggots manifested and began to devour the children inside…

The battle against Homura was going well until reinforcements had showed up. Now she didn't just have one magical girl to content with, but four.

"Four on one… No." Kirika stated. "I couldn't win against just Mami Tomoe. Staying as magical girl is just going to bring me down."

"Kirika-"she began.

"It's time, Oriko." Kirika stated, "If I can protect you, then I will DESPAIR IN PEACE!"

There was a shattering noise and an energy discharge as Kirika's soul gem shattered and the monstrosity known as Margot emerged….

The end was near. Kirika was dead. Margot was destroyed. Oriko was alone. She was losing the battle. The magi were coming in close to finish her off. 

"WHY DO ALL OF YOU GET IN MY WAY?!" Oriko screamed. Homura pulled out a gun and held it at her soul gem

_Stop it…. Please…This never happened! That's not how Kirika died! I don't murder schoolchildren! Please tell me I don't murder schoolchildren. Please… Please…_

Suddenly, everything froze.

"Figured you would need a bit of help with this bit." Oriko heard a voice and turned to see another Homura walking in from behind her. Glancing back at the still-frozen Homura, then at the arrival one.

"What's going…? Oh. Arael. Right…" Oriko stated. "Did this really happen?"

"Not anymore." Homura stated. "It was erased from the timeline. Some of us still remember it, but for all intents and purposes, no. I don't have long to talk before Rei comes back with the Lance, and there's something I need to tell you that I didn't get a chance to last time. It's about Third Impact. You know what's required to trigger it, right?"

"An Angels body and soul and what remains of Adam." Oriko stated.

"Right." Homura replied, "You know where Adam is, and your body qualifies. For the soul though, you need to get it from Armisael."

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" Oriko asked.

"Armisael." Homura repeated. "You need to get its soul."

"And how exactly am I supposed to do that?" Oriko asked, incredulously.

"That's up to you and Rei." Homura stated. "But I'll tell you this. It's a very lonely creature. All the Angels, are actually. That's where AT-fields come from. Loneliness. And you know perfectly well there's nothing worse than being completely, totally, alone."

At that point, the scene dissolved and Oriko found herself back in the EVA.

"Oriko!" Rei shouted, "Are you there? Are you alright?"

"I'm alive." Oriko stated.

"Thank god." Misato stated over the airwaves, "Neural actively completely stopped for five minutes. We were wondering if the Angel left you brain-dead."

Oriko didn't have a good response for that. She couldn't very well tell Misato she had survived with the help of divine intervention.

However, once she was disembarking from the EVA, she realized the day wasn't over yet as there was a very, very, angry Asuka waiting for her in the hanger.

"You BITCH!" she shouted, "This is the LAST GODDAMN STRAW! I challenge you, one-on-one EVA duel. Right here! Right now!"

Oriko sighed. "Go away, Asuka. I just got mind-raped. I'm in no mood for your antics."

"We're DOING this!" Asuka shouted.

"I approve the request made by the pilot of Unit 02." Gendo's voice crackled over the airwaves.

_One last gambit to get rid of me, father?_ Oriko thought.

"Fine." Oriko stated. "Get in your Unit and I'll let you get this out of your system."

Shaking her head in disgust, she climbed back into the Entry Plug and the two Evangelions were launched into the skyline.

She barely had time to react as the moment she was above ground, Unit 04 was tackled by Unit 02. Unit 02 pulled its progressive knife out of its shoulder and stabbed Oriko's EVA, then grabbed its arm and bit it off.

Unit 02 savagely tore into Unit 02 in a manner reminiscent of the dummy-plug controlled Unit 01's assault on Unit 03. Oriko nearly blanked out as the searing pain of the attack overtook her.

Eventually it was over. Thankfully, Asuka had sufficed with tearing Unit 04 into shreds and scattering it over Tokyo-3s skyline and hadn't, as Gendo had probably hoped, chosen to crush Oriko within her entry plug as well. As much as she hated the silver-haired girl, she wouldn't stoop to murdering her.

"Did you see that?!" Asuka shouted "I BEAT HER! I BEAT YOU, GODDAMN ICE QUEEN! NOW HOW DO YOU LIKE THAT?"

"Yes." Oriko stated drying, "You beat me. Congratulations, Asuka, you managed to tear my EVA into parts and prove once and for all you can out-pilot me. Now tell me, what exactly did that accomplish? Will that make Shinji and Rei your friends? Will that win you praise from Misato or Gendo? Have you accomplished anything with this inglorious display of rivalry aside from destroying a multi-billion dollar piece of equipment that the taxpayers will have to pay to repair, or has this ego trip of yours made you realize how empty your victory really is?"

There was a dead silence on the other end of the radio.

"I…" Asuka began. "I…. don't…."

"Just as I thought." Oriko stated, "It accomplished nothing. You truly are a sad, pathetic excuse for a human being when it comes right down to it. All it was about was piloting EVA. That was your entire life. You know who else was like that? Rei. Before I met her. But she gained me and Shinji as her friends. You blew apart every personal relationship you could have had a chance at by being unnecessarily antagonistic and completely immature. Pretty much our entire class has left the city by this point, Shinji detests your attitude, Misato mainly lets you stick around out of a sense of obligation, and to Rei, you're just "That girl over there." That's what we think of you by this point. "That girl over there." And one with an attitude, to boot."

There was another pause that was interrupted by Asuka sobbing.

"I…" she got out, "I, just…. I'm…" before breaking down in tears again.

"But hey, thing about relationships?" Oriko then added, "They can be fixed. You're smart enough to have graduated college at fourteen, won the hearts of pretty much every straight male in our school, and to tell you the truth, there's going to be a time when we really will need your piloting skill. Just tone down the attitude and get some maturity and you'll be alright. Trust me."

Asuka could be heard trying to stifle her tears.

"One last thing, when you get home, check in the linen closet next to your room. I left you a present." Oriko added.

Asuka waited until it was well after dusk to go back home. When she eventually got there, she checked in the closet. Inside was a bag filled to the brim with grief cubes and a note reading:

"These should suffice until I get to teach you the ropes of battle. Don't worry, you'll get your day in the sun. I promise." A smile face was drawn next to it. Asuka stared at it for a long moment, then went back to her room. Dropped the bad on the end table next to her bed, she slumped down and stared at the ceiling.

_She wasn't the crazy bitch._ She thought, _God help me. I was_._.. Oriko… I'm sorry._


	15. Chapter 14

Chapter 14:

Asuka awoke early the next morning to the sound of noises in the kitchen. For a moment, she considered staying in bed all day and sneaking out that night, but rejected the idea. She was hungry, and, as much as she hated to admit it, Oriko was a really good cook.

Walking down the stairs, she noticed the silver haired girl flipping some pancakes.

"Hello Asuka." Oriko remarked, "I hope you slept well."

"Oriko…" Asuka replied, her voice trailing off.

Oriko chuckled, "I've known you for almost nine weeks and that's the first time you actually called me by my name."

Asuka was taken slightly aback at that. "I'm sorry." She stated

"Don't worry about it." Oriko replied, "I'm not the type to hold a grudge." She placed a couple of the pancakes on a plate and handed them to Asuka.

The red-head nodded and took the plate. Quickly eating the food, she then grabbed her bag and headed out the door.

"School isn't for another hour." Oriko pointed out.

"Yeah. I think I'm going to see if I can meet Hikari." Asuka stated. "Tell Shinji and Rei I'm sorry for all the trouble." She quickly ran out, slamming the door behind her.

Meanwhile, upstairs, another encounter was taking place.

"I don't normally contract boys. But you, Shinji Ikari, have a surprising amount of potential…"

The next few days showed a notable shift in the household dynamics. Asuka seemed to be avoiding the others as best as she could. Staying out of the house almost the entire day and only coming home well after the sun had set. Additionally, Misato, for reasons Shinji and Oriko didn't understand, seemed to be withdrawing as well. As such, Shinji, Oriko, and Rei basically took care of themselves.

While this was going on, Gendo Ikari pondered exactly how the situation had spiraled so far out of his control. Between Oriko having won Rei's loyalty and SEELE breathing down his neck, he knew he was in a most precarious position. However, he wasn't aware that by having put Oriko in Unit 03, he had lost any chance of Rei acceding to his whims in regard for Instrumentality, he was not aware that Oriko and Asuka now both had magical powers, he was not aware that his son had been approached by the same being that had gifted the pilots of Units 02 and 04 with magical powers, and he most definitely was not aware that Oriko had her own goals in regards for the being that was currently grafted onto his hand.

A little knowledge, as they say, can be a dangerous thing. And Gendo would realize exactly how dangerous how little knowledge he had could be shortly after a meeting with SEELE in regards to the loss of the Lance of Longinus.

The arrival of the Sixteenth Angel was sudden, with its double helix form suddenly manifesting over the Tokyo-3 skyline. With Unit 04 having been torn into pieces and Unit 01 in cyrofreeze due to it having ingested the Fourteenth Angel's S2 organ, Unit 00 and Unit 02 were send on the surface to intercept it. As the Magi supercomputers were unable to analyze the Angel's form, the two pilots were ordered to hold in a standby position. For once in Asuka's life, she accepted such an order rather than charging blindly into battle.

For a few minutes, NERV seemed to be in a standoff with the Angel, only for the Angel to suddenly unhook one end of its double helix structure and impale Unit 00 with it. Without waiting for an Order, Asuka grabbed her pallete rifle and blasted the Angel as Unit 00's form began to warp under the Angel's shape.

Inside Unit 00, Rei Ayanami winced in pain as Armisael began to bond with her. Attempting to free herself, she suddenly found herself in another place…

When her eyes opened again, she found herself hovering over an ocean of LCL, facing a double of herself who was standing in the liquid up to her hips.

"Don't you want to become one with me?" the Angel asked.

"No." Rei stated, "I am me. Not you."

"But you will." The reply came, "It's too late. I will share part of my mind with you."

"I have no need for your mind." Rei replied, "I have my own mind, and my own will."

"Do you feel this pain?" The double asked, "This is what it means to feel lonely."

Meanwhile, Asuka was grabbing her progressive knife and attempting to impale the Angel in it.

"Damnit Misato!" she screamed "Where's that brilliant mind of yours? My weapons aren't doing jack against this thing! Can't you send Shinji out or, I don't know. Do SOMETHING?"

"The commander refuses to rescind the freeze on Unit 01." Misato replied through the com-link, desperately racking her brains for some solution.

"We're getting a reading from outside the battlefield!" Maya shouted. "Someone is- wait. What the-"

The bridge crew stared in astonishment as another figure appeared on the monitor. Oriko Mikuni, dressed in a brilliant white gown and a top hat, levitating above the ground on two silver spheres and flying straight towards the Angel.

A look of absolute horror appeared on Gendo's face. "Explain this!" he shouted, "Someone explain this to me! Captain Katsuragi, what is going on here?"

"I…" Misato began. "I don't know…"

As she watched, the other end of the Angel's form knocked itself free from Unit 02's grasp, and struck straight towards Oriko. The silver haired girl was enveloped in light and appeared next to Rei in the mindscape.

"Hello, Armisael." She stated

"You know who I am." The Angel replied and gave a smile, "You are lonely too, I can tell."

"I am not lonely." Rei stated.

"You are." Armisael replied, "You are incomplete."

"We have no need to be-"Oriko began.

"Complete." Rei finished. She glanced at Oriko and a smile formed on her face, before turning back to Armisael.

"She is in my mind." Rei stated.

"And I am in hers." Oriko replied.

"We are in sync."

"And we can tell you that we are not alone."

"You are."

Armisael stared at the two sisters, their minds connected in hers.

"I am not alone." The Angel stated.

"You are." Oriko replied.

"Who else is there?" Rei continued. "The children of Adam are dead."

"Save Tabris, but he is not like you. He is like us."

"You are the one who is lonely. We are not. We have no need to be.

"Because we have each other." Oriko finished.

"I am born complete." Armisael stated, "I have no need for others."

"Then why did you take Rei?" Oriko asked.

"Yes, why did you take me?"

"You wanted her. As you were lonely."

"But you cannot have me."

"You are the last of your kind." Oriko stated, "Nobody will understand you. Nobody will be with you. You will die. And go forever unmourned."

"How does that feel?" Rei asked, "To be alone?"

Armisael was silent, either unable or unwilling to answer.

"All you can do is die." Oriko stated.

"Yes. All you can do is die." Rei confirmed.

"Die."

"Die."

"Die."

"Die."

"Die alone."

"Die alone. And be forgotten."

"Stop it." Armisael stated, "Please just stop it." A tear fell from the Rei double's eye, "Just stop… and take what you want…"

The ocean of LCL began to bubble and froth as Armisael's form sank down beneath the ocean and began to dissolve.

Outside, in the real world, the instruments being used by NERVs bridge crew began fluctuating wildly.

"What's going on?" Misato shouted

"The Angel's AT-field is dissolving." Maya replied, "The pattern is stabilizing at a solid blue. Oriko is… Ma'am, the Angel appears to be entering Oriko!"

Indeed, as the double helix form of the Angel began to dissolve, the diamond-colored gemstone on Oriko's neck turned into a brilliant shade of azure.

"Sir, Rei is ejecting Unit 00's entry plug." Aoba stated.

"Rei!" Gendo shouted, "Return to NERV headquarters right now!"

"No." Came the reply.

"Rei, this is a direct order!" Gendo shouted.

This time, there was no reply.

"Rei, PLEASE!" the commander bellowed, panic evident in his voice

Miles distant, on the battlefield, Oriko picked up Rei Ayanami's form with unusual strength and flew off into the distance.

"Find them." Gendo stated. "Gather all our troops and find them. Terminate Oriko and bring Rei to me."

"Sir, the last few Angel attacks devastated our forces." Makoto stated, "And with the fact that two thirds of Tokyo-3's residence have left the city…"

"I don't care." Gendo replied, "Find them." In reality, he knew it was a lost cause. Rei had betrayed him. Even if NERV was able to find the two of them somewhere in this gutted hulk of a city, without her, there was no way he could reunite with Yui.

Everything he had worked for had been for naught.

Later that night, in a battered down house in the lower side of Tokyo-3, Oriko and Rei set up camp.

"They won't be searching this place for another three days." Oriko stated. "So we'll have to move before then. In the meantime…" she sighed and pulled out a small metal box.

"What's that?" Rei asked.

"Portable electromagnetic disrupter. Pretty fancy one too. It'll disrupt power to the city long enough to break into NERV and get some answers." She sighed and began turning a couple dials on the side. "Back later…"

Ritsuko Akagi had just been released from a most unpleasant interrogation at the hands of SEELE when the blackout hit. While she waited for engineers to restore power to the Geofront, she happened to hear a voice behind her.

"It's time we had a talk." Oriko stated.

Ritsuko sighed. "Yes, I suppose so… I'm surprised it took you this long."

"Yes, well, you know me." Oriko stated, "Waiting for the opportune moment and all. So talk. Who am I?"

Ritsuko was quiet for a moment. "Follow me. I'll explain on the way…" she stated.

As the two walked down a series of deserted maintenance tunnels, the lights flickered back on and Ritsuko spoke.

"How much did Rei tell you about herself?" she asked.

"She told me she's a clone, with other bodies that could be activated if she were to die. And I figured out she was key to the commanders plan for Instrumentality." Oriko stated.

"Correct." Ritsuko stated. "She is an Angel-human hybrid. Fifty-Fifty mix. Lilith's soul was implanted into her, as both the body and the soul of an Angel is needed..."

Opening a door, she led Oriko down a long escalator.

"You were our first attempt." Ritsuko continued, "But the difference was that you weren't born in a test tube. You were born in a womb. My mother's womb."

Oriko blinked. "Wait, what?"

"Half and Half, implanted in an embryo and set to develop for the course of the pregnancy. My mother wasn't really the loving type. She was a scientist through and through. So I wound up raising you when you were little." Ritsuko sighed. As the two reached the bottom of the shaft, she led Oriko into a dark room.

"But we found out a few years later that by being born by a parent, you had a human soul, not an Angels. And by trying to raise you, it make you strong willed. Uncontrollable. Unfit for the commanders plans." Ritsuko shook her head. "Rei had been a second project begun shortly after you were born. Gendo was determined to repeat the mistakes we made with you and so, well… You know how he treated her."

She flipped a light switch and the room lit up to reveal dozens, possibly hundreds, of Rei clones in glass tanks that lined the walls. She then picked up a small handheld device and the clones began disintegrating in their tanks.

"So." Ritsuko stated, "Now you know." She shook her head. "You know what we did and you know who you are. So tell me, are you going to kill me now?"

For a moment, no expression was visible on Oriko's face, then she shook her head.

"Of course not." She stated, "Don't be stupid. Gendo uses everyone around him like pawns, Hisaomi was just as bad, Theresa is dead and Yui's stuck inside Unit 01. You… You actually tried to raise me. Five parents, six if we count your mom, and you're the only one who made an attempt to actually do what that label implied. And we're not even related." Oriko sighed. "I'm pretty sure by now you realize how foolish you were to trust the commander, let alone begin a relationship with him thinking he loved you. And I think you realize your mistake in how you treated Rei as well. So I'm going to tell you what. Once things quiet down regarding the Angels and NERV hunting for me, we can get together and spend some quality daughter-and-surrogate-mother time together. How'd you like that?"

Ritsuko was stunned speechless, "You… would…Um…"

"Yeah. Little tip about me." Oriko stated, "I've got a soft spot for those seeking redemption. Anyway. I'll get going." She turned around and began heading back up the way she came. "Bye mom."

Ritsuko stood motionless for the longest time, then suddenly became aware her cheeks were burning.


	16. Chapter 15

Chapter 15.

By the end of the week after the Sixteenth Angel attack, Shinji found himself very lonely. Oriko and Rei had gone underground to escape capture by NERV, Asuka seemed to be actively avoiding having anything to do with him, and Misato was still torn up over the death of her former lover Kaji. While he was friends with Toji and Kensuke, he had come to realize exactly how distant those friendships had gotten as he became closer to his sister and Rei Ayanami.

Eventually, he decided he had enough and so stayed up extremely late one night to greet Asuka as she came home.

The minute she entered, he put on as friendly a smile as he could and said, "Hey Asuka."

"Oh. Hey Shinji." Came the response. "Why aren't you in bed?"

"I could ask the same thing of you." Shinji replied.

"Oh. That." Asuka sighed, "It's a magical girl thing. Kill wraiths, get grief cubes. I'm stockpiling so I won't run out." She turned and began to walk up to her room, only for Shinji to interrupt.

"Can we talk for a bit?" Shinji asked, "We haven't gotten a chance to talk yet, and I'd like to."

Asuka sighed. "What's there to talk about?"

"The fact you've been avoiding me." Shinji stated, "Listen, I'm not upset with how you acted. You've had a rough life. I understand that."

"You ever walk into your home and see your mother dangling from the ceiling rafters?" Asuka asked. "And know she would have done the same to you too if not for the fact she couldn't tell you apart from a doll she treated as her daughter?"

"No, but my father abandoned me at a train station." Shinji replied, "And I didn't hear hide nor hair of him for eight years until he summoned me to fight the Third Angel."

Asuka shrugged, "How'd you get so good at piloting anyway? I've been training my entire life and you show me up in a matter of weeks."

"I'm not sure." Shinji admitted, "But at this point it doesn't really matter. Oriko says there's only one Angel left."

"And she knows this how?" Asuka asked.

"She's precognitive." Shinji replied.

"Seriously?" Asuka asked, "What kind of a wish did she make for that?"

"She wanted to know the meaning of her life." Shinji replied.

Asuka blinked. "And of course she makes a much better wish than I did too. Urg. I must have been an idiot for thinking the Angels would keep coming forever."

"Speaking of wishes." Shinji stated, "Kyuubey approached me a few days ago."

"But you're a boy." Asuka pointed out. "And we're supposed to be magical girls. Not…"

"Wasn't my idea." Shinji replied. "I'm just wondering if I should take him up on the offer."

"You'd be best off asking your sister about that." Asuka stated, "Anyway, I'm tired. Gonna hit the hay."

"Alright." Shinji stated, "I'd like to talk to you more. Without our friends, it's rather quiet around here."

"Yeah sure." Asuka replied. "I'll take tomorrow off and we can… I dunno. Hit the mall or something. Night."

It was just a few days later when the encounter happened. Shinji, unable to sleep due to thoughts of recent events rushing through his head, took a long midnight walk, eventually reaching a park. Sitting down on a bench he sighed.

And then heard someone humming Beethoven's Ninth. Turning, he saw a young boy roughly his age with silver hair sitting on a rock behind him.

"The song is good." The boy stated. "Singing brings us joy. I would call this song the greatest achievement of the entire Lilin culture. Don't you agree, Shinji Ikari?"

"I'm more of a Mozart fan." Shinji replied. "How do you know my name?"

"Everyone knows your name." The boy stated, chuckling slightly. "You are quiet aware of your own position, if I may say so. I am Kaworu Nagisa, the Fifth Child. A pleasure."

"Likewise." Shinji replied, giving a grin. "I'm surprised they're looking for new pilots."

"Well, it's more like I was sent here." Kaworu stated. "Tell me more about the music you enjoy…"

The two wound up talking long into the night, and by the end, Shinji made a decision to resume playing the cello when things settled down. By the time the finished, Shinji realized that it was only three hours until the scheduled sync test, so he bid a hasty farewell to get ready.

It had been decided that Kaworu would be testing the recently repaired Unit 04, as it was significantly more advanced than Unit 00 was. And as he was immersed in the LCL he heard a chuckling and then a voice.

_Hello hello hello! _

_Eh?_ He thought _Who is this?_

_Name's Kirika Kure. I'm kinda stuck in here for the moment. Not really my preferred choice of venues, but hey, can't make an omelet without cracking a few soul gems, so to speak._

_Soul gems? What are you talking about?_

_What I'm talking about is why you're here. You got a choice in your mind. Obey SEELEs orders like a good little dog, betray them and suffer a painful death, or get yourself killed by one of the pilots._

_How do you know about this? You shouldn't know about that!_

_Madoka told me. She told me a lot of things, including a few Oriko doesn't know. Like, for example, you'll get another choice where nobody gets killed or turned into tang, but you gotta have the balls to take it. Not that you have balls down there, but you know what I mean._

_Madoka? Who is Madoka? And my personal regions are none of your business._

_Yeah, yeah, whatever, let's just get this show on the road. You wanna sync with me? Go right ahead. Why I'm here._

The presence in Kaworu's mind retreated and would not respond to further probing.

Later on, Kaworu left a harmonics test to find Shinji at the bottom of the escalator.

"Well, hello there. Were you waiting for me?" he asked.

"Kinda, yeah." Shinji remarked and chuckled. "Was wondering if you'd like to hang out for a bit. My home has been rather quiet as of late."

"The fact that you have a home is a good thing." Kaworu stated. "It will bring you joy."

Shinji looked Kaworu up and down. Similar height and facial features to Oriko and Rei... Same exact hair color as Oriko… The ability to sync with Unit 04 when he shouldn't be able to…

Yeah, it was pretty obvious what was going on here. And Kaworu having called humanity the "lilin" was just the icing on the cake.

"Do you have someplace we can talk in private?" Shinji asked.

"Shall we go up to my room?" Kaworu asked

Shinji nodded.

As they entered Kaworu's room, the silver-haired boy spoke again.

"You have much pain in your heart, Shinji Ikari." he stated, "Some say, that since the heart feels pain so easily, life is pain."

"It can be. But it's not all bad." Shinji replied. "Though I do wish Oriko would come back...

"Without your sister and your friend, a hole has been left in your heart." Kaworu stated, "You are worth earning my empathy."

Shinji raised an eyebrow "Earning your empathy?"

"I am saying I love you."

"Yeah…" Shinji replied, sighing. He really didn't want to have this talk, but it was better than the alternative. "Kaworu…" he felt his cheeks growing warm all of a sudden and attempted to avert his gaze from the silver-haired boy.

"Would you like a hug, Shinji Ikari?" Kaworu asked.

Shinji felt his face turn a bright crimson. "Um… Um… Uh… Sure…." He stammered out, and felt himself being wrapped in a tight embrace. The boy's arms were strong, and Shinji felt himself relax at the touch. He had been hugged by his sister but this was… this was different and he felt…

He felt like he had finally found something he didn't even know he had lost.

"Kaworu…" he said softly. "Can we sit down? I need to talk about something with you."

Kaworu nodded and brought Shinji over to a futon. Taking a seat next to him, he smiled "What's on your mind?"

"I know you're the last Angel." Shinji replied.

Instantly, the smile faded. "Oh." Kaworu stated and looked down at the floor. "May I ask how you figured it out?"

"Oriko told me you'd be arriving." Shinji stated. "Why are you here?"

Kaworu didn't answer.

"Kaworu…" Shinji began. "Please."

Kaworu remained silent.

"Tabris-"Shinji began, and at that, Kaworu's eyes jerked up.

"How do you know my real name?" he asked, stunned.

"Oriko, again." Shinji replied and shrugged, "She told me a lot of stuff."

"I wish I could have a chance to meet this girl." Kaworu stated, "She sounds like a lovely conversationalist. She is your sister, correct?"

"Yeah. And I'll introduce you to her." Shinji replied, "Once she comes out of hiding. I mean, you're the last Angel, right? Once we figure out how to help you, she can come back."

"It's not that simple, Shinji Ikari." Kaworu stated sadly, "SEELE would be most… unpleased, if I were to deviate from the scenario they envisioned."

"What did they have planned?" Shinji asked.

"I am here to reunite with my father, Adam, who is currently lying in terminal dogma. In the process, humanity will be freed from their earthly bonds and join in Instrumentality."

"Why don't you just tell them to take a hike?" Shinji replied.

"Then they would send out their forces, including the mass-produced Evangelion series. I am sorry, Shinji, but I don't have a choice."

"You're the Angel of Free Will, Tabris." Shinji replied, "You've always had the choice."

Kaworu raised an eyebrow, "Another fact from Oriko?"

"Actually, that I got my looking up Christian references to Tabris on the internet." Shinji replied and leaned in close to the silver haired boy. "What if I told you I could make you human?"

Kaworu raised an eyebrow, "I would say that would be impossible."

"When it comes to magical girls, nothing is impossible." Shinji replied, "If we go that route, it'd throw them off and give Oriko time to figure out how to stop them."

"It would also cause me to lose my AT-field and related abilities." Kaworu replied, "I would be virtually defenseless."

"Don't worry about that." Shinji replied, giving a coy smile, "I'll protect you."

Kaworu chuckled, despite himself. _Another choice, Kirika Kure? Well then… _"Alright then." He replied, giving a smile, "Don't let me down, Shinji Ikari."

"Don't worry." Shinji replied. "Hey, Kyuubey? I've decided on a wish…"

Miles away, Oriko bolted upright and ran into the room Rei was sleeping in. "Rei, wake up. We've got to go."

"What?" Rei asked, shaking her head, "I thought the last Angel wouldn't be dealt with for several more days."

"I did too. My brother had other ideas." Oriko replied, "One thing I never considered was that Kyuubey would contract a boy. So Kaworu is now human, the next sync test will alert SEELE tomorrow… We've got to move our timetable up. We leave now. Strike tomorrow morning. Hope you're in for a long day because things are going to get hairy."


	17. Chapter 16

Chapter 16.

"What's everyone's status?" Rei asked as the entered the tube to the Geofront.

"Shinji and Asuka are in the hanger, Kaworu following shortly behind." Oriko replied, "Gendo is going to be meeting with SEELE shortly, so we need to intercept him before he makes contact. Your Unit is in the usual place. You can tell Kaworu he has permission to pilot mine during the conflict." She pulled out a phone. "Hey, mom? We're ready. Can you deactivate the security gates?"

"You're willing to give Ritsuko another chance?" Rei asked as the two began making their way down corridors.

"Yes." Oriko stated. "I'll explain why later. Suffice to say it involves my history. I take it you don't approve?"

Rei considered that for a bit, "It is not my place to judge." She finally stated. "But I will not waste any time hating her for what she did."

The two quickly hurried down several more corridors, before coming to a large door. Oriko gestured and a sphere the size of a car slammed into it and tore it off its hinges. Inside, Gendo Ikari swiftly turned around.

"Rei." He stated.

"Don't say my name you monster." Rei replied, tones of hatred in her voice.

"Don't mind us." Oriko stated. "We're just here because we need a hand." She grinned and pulled a large knife from her pocket. "Specifically, your hand."

Gendo stared at Oriko, then at Rei, then sighed. "I suppose this is checkmate then."

"Checkmate?" Oriko asked, "Its only chess if you don't care about the pieces. If you do, you cheat. Like I cheated. It's not much fun trying to outwit someone who knows every move you're going to make in advance, is it?"

A baseball-sized sphere smacking Gendo Ikari in the head and knocked him out.

"Get the medkit from over there." Oriko motioned, "I want this bastard alive to see my ultimate triumph…"

"Attention! Everyone currently in NERV headquarters!" The voice came across the intercom, "This is Oriko Mikuni broadcasting on all channels! Very shortly, this station will come under a coordinated attack by the JDSF and I need you all ready to minimize causalities! Misato, I hope that brilliant tactical mind of yours can come up with an effective defense from ground troops as well as Angels because otherwise we're going to have very heavy causalities. Asuka, we will be shortly be coming under attack from the Mass-Produced Evangelion series. There's nine of them, and they've got fully functioning S2 engines, so you need to destroy the cores. Otherwise, they'll just regenerate and keep coming after you. I _dare_ you to slaughter them before they stop you. Shinji, I hope your new abilities can provide some sort of defense here, and good job on being the one person to completely blindside me since I arrived in Tokyo-3. I sadly won't be able to participate in the battle, but Rei will be making her way down to the hanger. Additionally-"

The broadcast suddenly cut off as alerts came over the computer series signaling a systematic attack on the Magi supercomputers from every other Magi system on the globe.

Oriko sighed and turned to Rei. "Well, this is it. I'm going to head down to Terminal Dogma now. I trust you'll be safe?"

"As safe as I can be." Rei replied. "You'll be coming back, right? This won't be the last time I get to see you, will it?"

"I doubt Madoka want me separated. Don't worry. I'll be coming back. Assuming the people I care about will be here to come back to." Oriko grinned. "Anyway, see you." She turned and hurried off. Rei bolted in the opposite direction.

As Oriko reached the massive blast door to where the Angel Lilith lay in kept, is slid down to reveal a familiar blonde-haired women inside

"So this is it?" Ritsuko asked, "You're serious about this? Initiating Third Impact?"

Oriko nodded, "The room of Gauf must be refilled." She stated, and pulled Gendo's severed hand out.

"Before you go… "Ritsuko stated. "I'm sorry for everything."

"You're forgiven." Oriko stated. There was a flash of light as she transformed into her magi garb, and then placed Gendo's palm on her soul gem. She felt a jerking sensation and felt herself floated upwards and back, into Lilith's form, before vanishing from this plane of existence.

Elsewhere in NERV headquarters, Rei had arrived in the hanger at the same time Shinji and Kaworu had.

"So, here's what I'm thinking." Asuka stated. "Given I made my wish for EVA piloting, I'm going to put it to good use. Shinji, I'd suggest you take Kaworu down to Unit 04 and then see if you can combat the ground troops. Given you're the other magical girl here, I think you're about the only one who will stand a chance and even if Kaworu can't sync with it being he's not an Angel anymore, it's safe than him being here." She then glanced to look at the last arrival, "Rei, get in your Unit. You'll be my backup."

"It is a reasonable plan." Kaworu stated.

Shinji winced visibly, but nodded

"Anyway, let's go." Asuka stated and bolted up the ladder to her EVA, Rei quickly hurried to hers. At that moment, the base alert started blaring, indicating its invasion by enemy forces.

As Unit 02 and Unit 00 reached the surface, Asuka took a look around.

"We've got some time before we engage in EVA-to-EVA combat." She stated, "Rei, help me pick off the ground troops. The fewer that reach the base, the more people will survive."

"Understood." Rei stated.

The moment the alert sounded, Shinji held his soul gem and transformed. His plugsuit vanished and became replaced by a pink jumpskirt with similarities to the sweet Lolita style, as well as a white blouse and white shoes with a small heel.

"Um…" he mumbled, blushing.

"I must say, Shinji Ikari," Kaworu stated, "You look simply adorable in that outfit. Ravishing, even."

Shinji's face flushed a bright red, and he gestured. A crossbow appeared in his hand and the two of them ran down the corridor. Noticing several enemy troops, he held up the weapon. A bolt made out of pure energy formed, and as he pulled the trigger, it set off and strike one of the men in the leg. Firing again, he hit the other, and continued downward.

"I really don't want to do this…" He mumbled, "I don't want to hurt them."

"It is that or they will hurt us." Kaworu stated, "You know this. Do not worry. I love you, Shinji Ikari."

"Yeah, thanks..." Shinji mumbled, still clearly shaken.

"We've got incoming!" Asuka shouted as nine large, white forms descended from above and arrived on the battlefield. "Rei, suppressing fire!"

In response, Unit 00 grabbed a pair of palette rifles and began unloading them into the group. Asuka leapt to the side, then ran towards the harpies. Grabbing one of them, she slammed in onto the ground, then grabbed the chest cavity and viciously tore the core out before crushing it in her palm. A moment later, her Unit was grabbed on the back of its head by a large white hand. Seeing the other pilot struggling furiously, Rei removed palette knife from Unit 00's shoulder and ran up, stabbing it hard into the arm. Taking advantage of the momentary weakness, Asuka responded by tearing the arm off, then slamming her fist into the core.

"Two down, seven to go." She remarked.

Meanwhile, Shinji and Kaworu had finally reached Unit 04.

"Perhaps you should head to yours now." Kaworu remarked.

"No... Wait…" Shinji replied "I need to do something here…" he paused, and then approached the Evangelion. "I can hear her… I can hear her in there. She want out. She wants to help." He focused and tendrils of orange energy began pouring from the Unit towards the floor.

"Shinji Ikari, what are you doing?"

Shinji didn't respond. And moments later, the orange energy took a form of a black haired girl in an outfit reminiscent of a tuxedo and an eyepatch over her eye.

"Helllooooo WORLD!" she screamed. "Kirika Kure is BACK and here to KICK SOME ASS!" She gave a maniacal grin and two blood red sets of claws appeared on her hand, before sprinting down the corridor.

Above ground, Asuka narrowly avoided another of the harpies attempting to leap on top of her. Grabbing one of the polearms that had been dropped by a now-disabled one, she picked it up and swung it at Evangelion number 6. It parried with its own weapon, then stumbled a bit as another rifle was emptied into its back by Unit 00. Taking advantage of the weakness, Asuka sliced it in two, then tossed the core to Rei to crush. Then, grabbing the heads of two other Units, she slammed them together, then dropped one hand to rip out one of their cores. She crushed it and then slammed the other through its chest to disable it.

"Message to base command, our forces are being decimated by an unknown female, fourteen years of age, apparently in possession of metaphysical powers-"the solder began, moments before his head was cleanly separated from his body.

It was wonderful to finally have a body again. And Kirika Kure was certainly making the most of it, by slicing up anyone and everyone who had thought that taking over this base would be a simple task. Looking back at the dozens of dead bodies piled behind her, she grinned, then bolted down the corridor.

At that moment, one of the remaining four MPEs lifted its weapon, and before Asuka's eyes it began to change in form.

"The lance of Longinus." She mumbled, "Rei, return to the hanger!"

"Sorry, Asuka." Rei replied. "I'm your backup."

The Evangelion hurled the lance straight towards Unit 00, and Asuka pulled Unit 02 into a full-fledged sprint following it. Moments before the Lance reached its target, Asuka grabbed it by the handle, then turned to the Harpies and grinned.

"Guess what I'm gonna do with this?" she asked playfully.

As Kirika bolted down the hallways of NERV at unnatural speed, slicing up soldiers as she went, she happened to notice a purple haired women taking deep breaths and standing over the bodies of two other troops.

"Nice to meet you, Misato, I'm Kirika." She stated, grinning, "I'm Oriko's girlfriend."

"Kirika?" Misato asked, "I thought you were…"

"I was. Shinji got me out. Don't worry, I'll clean out this infestation for you."

Unit 01 reached the surface of the battle just moments after Asuka had finished destroying the last of the Evangelion series.

"Guess I'm a bit late." Shinji remarked.

"Yeah, you are. But whatever." Asuka replied, "After this, I think we should all go out to an all-you-can-eat ice cream buffet to celebrate."

Oriko floated in an ocean of stars, barely conscious and barely moving.

"You did well." A voice stated.

"Hello?" she asked, "Homura? No, you're not Homura. Who…?"

The worlds around her flickered, and an immensely tall girl with pink hair and a flowing white dress appeared. Oriko had never seen her before, but she somehow, instinctually, knew who she was.

"Madoka…?" she asked.

"Yep." The Goddess replied and grinned, "Like my new look?"

"You're kinda big." Oriko replied.

Madoka chuckled. "Fair enough. Hold on one second…"

The scene flickered and the two reappeared in the fields Oriko had seen so often in her dreams. Madoka was still there, but much smaller, a foot shorter than Oriko, though still attired the same.

"Is this it then?" Oriko asked, "The angels dealt with, the birth rates fixed, my friends and I can get back to a halfway normal life?"

"Indeed." Another voice spoke, and Oriko turned to see Homura walking up behind her. "How do you feel?"

"Relieved, I guess." Oriko replied "Glad I got to finally accomplish some good in my life."

"We were thinking of getting all the other magi to come here to congratulate you." Madoka remarked, "How'd you feel about that?"

"It's not really necessary." Oriko replied, "But I appreciate the thought."

Madoka chuckled, "Oh, all right. We'll do it whenever you return, though, for sure. By I way, you've got a present waiting for when we send you back. You can thank your brother for it."

"And one more, from me." Homura stated. Gesturing, a black longbow appeared in her hand, and she held it out to Oriko.

Taking it, the weapon turned from a pitch black to a brilliant white in Oriko's hand.

"We've chosen you to carry on our legacy." Homura stated. "Be proud. You have earned the right to be considered chosen."

Oriko was speechless, and so simply bowed to the two.

"I will make you proud." She stated, then vanished from the unearthly realm.


	18. Epilogue

Epilogue.

When Oriko awoke, she didn't move. She just lay there for a moment.

"Well hey there, look whose back!" A voice stated, and Oriko jerked upwards. Seeing another girl her age with pitch black hair in the chair across from her wink at her, she blinked.

"K-K-K-" she stammered out.

"Come on, say my name. You've said it thousands of times before."

"Kirika?!" Oriko cried.

"There we go. Yep, it's me. In the flesh." Kirika grinned, "I missed you, you silver-haired piece of awesomeness."

"I… I missed you too." Oriko replied, tears coming to her eyes. "How did you come back?"

"Well, when your brother made his wish, he got the ability to make the souls inside EVAs human again. He should be just about getting done with the others around now, so expect more visitors." Kirika got up and leaned over Oriko. Placing her lips on the silver haired her, she slipped her tongue into Oriko's mouth. Oriko relaxed and took in the sensation, her eyes brimming with happy tears as she realized that her best friend and lover was finally back again.

"Are the two lovebirds getting along?" A voice stated and a brown-haired lady entered the room, followed shortly by Shinji Ikari.

"Uh, hey Oriko." Shinji remarked, "Here, I'd like you to meet my, er, our mom."

"Yes, I am Yui Ikari." The lady said, "A pleasure."

'Finally back huh?" Oriko asked. "One must wonder what Gendo is thinking right now."

"Well, given that I told him that what he did made him an absolute irredeemable monster that should never talk to me again…" Yui remarked, "I would expect that he's either drowning his sorrows with alcohol or putting a bullet through his head. I hope the latter, personally."

"Certainly deserves as much." Oriko remarked. "So, since you're here, I'm guessing you pulled the souls out of Units 02 and 00 as well?"

"Yeah, I did. Asuka should be right behind me with-"

"Of course I'm right behind you!" Asuka shouted, entering the room with a tall, redhaired lady. "Anyway, this is my mom. Kyoko Zeppelin Sohryu."

"Nice to meet you all." The women replied, looking around at the fairly large group of people.

"And well…" Rei stated, as she entered into the room. Right behind her was Kaworu, and she was carrying a young blue-haired girl about five years of age. "Meet the other Rei. Wave to everyone, Rei."

The girl simply hmmphed and shook her head at the crowd.

"So I guess the question is,' Oriko started, "What do we do now?"

"We make out." Kirika replied. "We have lots of wonderful noisy makeout sessions that we didn't get a chance to do while I was away."

"I think she means in a more general sense." Shinji replied.

"Well, with the Angels all defeated and the Evangelions deactivated, there's not much too do." Yui stated, "Ritsuko has provided the United Nations with all the evidence she could provide on SEELE in exchange for immunity. Gendo will be facing life in prison, as will the other members of the council, once they are caught. As for the rest of us, well, we can do pretty much whatever we want."

"Also, the birthrates returned to pre-Second Impact levels practically overnight." Shinji stated, "You had something to do with that, didn't you?"

Oriko chuckled and gave a slightly goofy grin, "Yeah, you could say that. Tell me, have I talked to you about our lord and savior Madoka Kaname?"


End file.
